Last week I met an English resident of rural Andalusia who, around a year ago, went to see his local GP complaining of chest pains. It was diagnosed as bronchitis but, three weeks later, when it hadn't go away he returned to the surgery. A second doctor immediately arranged for him to have tests at a hospital. Guess what?

The result was that he had cancer. Fortunately, it was caught early and with radiotherapy treatment he has been able to clear the cancerous growth. I asked him about the treatment he had received. Exemplary, he said. Couldn't have been better. Right through from the nurses to the consultant specialists. And any time I need an appointment locally, I get it straight away. I've never had to wait more than the next day.

Each time he needed transport to the hospital an ambulance came down the narrow winding track through the olives to his cortijo to collect him. You wouldn't get that in U.K., he said.

This is an expression I have heard before. And I’ve heard even worse said about the health service in the Netherlands.

This man’s experience echoes that of a client of mine. Lawrie was rushed to hospital complaining of chest pains and difficulty in breathing. He ended up spending several weeks in hospital and was operated on for a heart by-pass. A week after the operation, he was back home and active once again.