David Peat David Peat is chief executive of East Lancashire PCT.

We all know we should eat less, exercise more, stop smoking and drink less alcohol. But we all ask: where is the fun in that?

I suppose it is human nature to try to focus on the feel-good sides of life and shield ourselves from difficult or unpalatable realities.

It occurred to me the other day that just as TV soap devotees have Coronation Street, in East Lancashire we have Howard Street. But instead of the Rovers Return being the centre of everything that moves, we have Howard Street's community health centre.

Call them benchmarks, standards or targets, it is no bad thing to have aspirations and the will to achieve. It is also good to be put on the spot sometimes, to help streamline the process and refine best practice.

One of the eternal dilemmas for a chief executive is to translate the words of policy documents into meaningful action on the front line