[lettie]

I had a real barney with a girl in the Bridge in Accy about 4 years ago. She was flower selling claiming to be raising cash for special care baby units. When I asked her which unit she couldn't name even one. I know all the staff of our local one and we'd had a memo round work warning of special care baby unit scams and not to donate as the units never see the money. The people who geniunely raise money for our unit are parents who have appreciated the care and support we have given, not only to their babies but to their families. These tend to be small occasions like charity head shaves, waxes, sponsored walks etc. The money raised doesn't just go for medical equipment. On delivery suite it paid for TV's in the labour rooms, cups and saucers so that we could make people a brew after delivery, material for new curtains bedspreads etc which the midwives made in their own time to make the rooms more homely, beanbags, birthballs and all the other non-essential niceties that the NHS cannot afford to provide.