I KNOW you saved my sight doctor, but it really is a disgrace I was kept waiting.

I would like to reply to Mrs J Barnes' letter regarding being kept waiting for her appointment at the eye hospital.

I'm afraid it is patients who make clinics run late. It is impossible to state exactly how long any given appointment will take. Patients will insist on being human and not robotic, and they also insist on their full quota of time (and often more) with the specialist.

Think about how you examine a deaf person, or a disabled person with learning difficulties, or an elderly person who is slow to get in and out of their chair. They all need time and they may all have been in front of you on your day in the clinic.

I have never yet heard anyone say "just do a quick check for me please because I am really worried I am keeping other patients waiting."

Do you possibly think about the clinician who is trying to give the best care possible without making a mistake when you are kept waiting? If you would like to be seen exactly on time and be given tea and biscuits, specialists are available privately where you can have as much time as you can pay for. I, for one, think our specialists are worth the wait.

EDWIN SHIELD, Blackburn (full address supplied).