Hello Mark, I can assure you that I have visited homes of people on benefit where every last 10p is accounted for. Ten pounds would be an unimaginable sum to have lying around. People in these circumstances are unable to plan and feel totally impotent. People on sickness benefit are even more likely to suffer since they have no chance of getting back to work in the short term and improving their lives. Imagine you're him - kid in pain, no money, you've been told to wait, you don't know how long... Imagine the frustration and guilt you must feel. This man probably didn't even start to think about getting back home. Getting to hospital in the first place would have seemed difficult enough in itself. And what would the alternative arrangements have been? A homemade splint held in place with sticking plaster? I understand the frustrations of dealing with people who you deem to be "feckless". But this is not true of everyone. I was alright: I could give up my job and walk away when it all got too depressing for me. For the people I counselled, poverty and debt were inescapable. It's now 16 years since I did debt counselling. I still remember the details of some of the cases I dealt with. Harrowing situations where people had made life choices, only to have their health suddenly change, leaving them totally unable to cope. I know from reading your blog and Steve's that you and he have seen how you each work and been amazed to see how the complaints that crews and control centre workers have of each other are largely unjustified. I'm sure if you could swap places with this father, you'd see things aren't as straightforward as you might imagine.