Whilst I have long shared Mr Holt’s frustrations and anger at the lack of health services in the Devizes area (letters, June 5), there are some points that need clarifying about what remains an immensely complicated situation.

As was reported in this paper a few weeks ago, from now on, Devizes X-ray services are going to be provided at the Treatment Centre in Marshall Road.

Whatever one’s views on privatisation of the NHS, the Treatment Centre is not going anywhere; the Clinical Commissioning Group is already paying for its services and, contractually, will continue to do so regardless, so it seems foolish not to get their money’s worth from it by fully utilising its excellent X-ray facilities, when the current ones at Devizes Hospital are so out-of-date and unreliable.

I hope Mr Holt will be able to access this X-ray service for any future treatment instead of having to traipse to Bath, Swindon or Salisbury.

Devizes Hospital remains an ideal location for health facilities, and while some of the buildings are no longer fit for purpose, it is possible that the footprint is big enough to accommodate better provision along the lines of the defunct Primary Care Centre proposal but, regrettably, the money for that, let alone re-opening a cottage hospital, just isn’t there, and the GPs aren’t on board with it either.

As to selling the site off for housing, I am not sure if the covenant on the land can prevent that; but the difficulty seems to be that even if a sale were to go ahead, there is some doubt as to whether the profits from it would be put back into health services for Devizes, so that we could have the long-promised Primary Care Centre and minor injuries provision.

The structure of the NHS puts such properties in a different department from commissioning and provision, with a different set of priorities, and no local connections. However, while no alternative local provision for the other health services is currently available, I can but hope that nothing will change for the worse, and the site will remain in NHS hands.

The CCG is currently talking to the Campus Development Group about possible health facilities at any campus that may be created in the town. That could solve the problem of minor injuries, but it is very early days for the campus project, and no-one knows what else, if anything, could be included.

If you want to find out what the CCG is proposing, go to its meeting from 7pm-9pm on Monday, in the Wessex Room of the Corn Exchange in Devizes.

Anyone who would like to attend or would like further information should contact Wiltshire CCG on (01380) 733738 or WCCG.info@ nhs.net Information about the CCG’s five-year plan can be found at: www.wiltshireccg.nhs.uk/5yearplan.

Judy Rose, Co-ordinator, Devizes Community Area Partnership health and well-being group.