Letter: NHS bid for power

Sir : Dr Janet Menage (letter, 3 May) states that the cost of nurse telephone triage is 10 times that of calls to a GP co-op, and that GPs can deal with 20 calls per hour whilst a nurse can only deal with four. Where on earth do her figures come from ? Is not this a case of a doctor displaying an unfounded fear of an erosion of her influence? Of course, this all presupposes a caller can get past the GP's receptionist, which could take a week.

RICHARD POWELL RGN

Nuneaton, Warwickshire