BEHIND THE STATISTICS

"One NHS hospital patient in eight still waits more than a year for treatment, figures released by the Department of Health suggest. Data from 208,000 people admitted to hospital in March showed that 48 per cent of patients needing a hospital stay were treated within 18 weeks. But 30 per cent waited more than 30 weeks, and 12.4 per cent more than a year." (Times, 12 June) Behind these dry statistics lies the real human misery of being poor and ill inside capitalism. RD