The money spent by Bradford Health Action Zone on making a medical soap opera aimed at the Asian community no doubt seemed a first-class idea at the time.

Asian people suffer some health problems to a greater degree than much of the rest of the wider community, among them diabetes, strokes, heart disease, mental illness and asthma. At least some of these are caused by diet and lifestyle.

It can reasonably be argued that if people can be persuaded to change their ways, then the overall health of the Asian community surely must improve. And what better way to get across the message than through television, particularly a soap opera featuring characters in situations with which they can identify?

So no doubt the six-figure cost of making a medical soap set largely in a small inner-city practice and a ward in a fictional Bradford hospital appeared to be a worthwhile investment in preventive health care. It has the potential to repay itself many times over in the long term through a general improvement in health.

It is unfortunate, then, that the project has now been marred by a row over whether or not the series will ever get a screening.

With hindsight, it would no doubt have been better to have ensured that there would be an outlet for it before filming began rather than making it and then negotiating to sell it.

Let us hope that before long a channel will be found on which to show the soap opera and that the money turns out not to have been wasted after all.