I had to take my son to the A&E Department of the Royal Sussex County Hospital the other day for what turned out to be an appendectomy.

For readers who are not familiar with the site, this department is inconveniently located at the top of a steep hill. The building is drab and uninviting and the forecourt is not only exposed to the prevailing winds but also congested.

Ambulances come and go, often at breakneck speed given the urgency of their business, and the minimal parking space is invariably full. As a result, drivers are forced to drop off the sick and suffering and leave them to their own devices while they endeavour to park in the car park further up the hill.

The hospital is not located close to a station and, for the majority of people, reaching it by bus presents a problem. Is it reasonable to expect people who are sick, work unsociable hours or pressed for time to travel by bus?

The area is densely populated and provided with a limited number of parking spaces which are regularly patrolled by "trigger happy" traffic wardens.

Given these circumstances, it might be reasonable to expect the hospital would seek to accommodate people by providing adequate parking.

You would be wrong. Indeed, once the children's hospital which is in the course of construction is completed, the problem will be aggravated as no additional parking facilities are intended.

To cap it all, if you need to stay you have to pay for the pleasure of delivering, collecting and visiting sick relatives and friends.

This whole issue is a disgrace. So much for being a progressive, caring city.

-Neil Kelly, Hove