NHS disruption expected amid five-day doctor strike

The public is invited to continue to seek NHS worry despite a five -day building strike By resident doctors, the 12th action of this type since March 2023.

The disengagement should start at 7 a.m. Friday, with thousands of resident doctors who should participate.

The NHS England said that local hospitals and teams were largely preparing for industrial action, by implementing plans to “minimize patient care disruptions and guarantee that rescue care is continuing”.

Sir Jim Mackey, the new NHS chief in England, urged hospital leaders to maintain operations and routine appointments as much as possible, only canceled if patient safety is in danger.

However, the British medical association (BMA) At the time, saying that the NHS England strategy to continue business as usual during the strike presents a risk for patients.

Despite the strike, General surgeries will work as normal, and urgent care services and A&E services will remain available for people in need, according to NHS England.

It is advisable to the public to use 111 online as an initial contact point for urgent but non -deadly health problems.

Professor Meghana Pandit, National Medical Director of the NHS in England, said: “There is no doubt that this industrial action will have wreaked havoc on patients and NHS staff, and it is disappointing that he goes forward.

“Although this means that some meetings will not be able to move forward as expected, we do everything possible to limit this, and patients should continue to use NHS services in the usual way.

“The public should deal with 999 in an emergency, and otherwise use 111 online, your local pharmacist or general practitioner, and patients should attend the NHS appointments, unless otherwise indicated.”

The president of BMA Council, Dr. Tom Dolphin, said: “It is worrying that the NHS in England seems determined to tell hospitals to continue to provide non -urgent planned care on strike days, despite our warnings that this will leave the levels of dangerous personnel in all areas.

“At best, this will leave the managers of hospitals and confused senior doctors on what they should plan this week, resulting in last -minute cancellations, and at worst in danger of patients in the event of an emergency and planned care.

“Senior doctors cannot cover simultaneously for striking resident doctors emergency servicesWhile continuing routine work, and the NHS England is irresponsible by suggesting that they can do both.

“The priority of strike days must be emergency and emergency care.”

The strikes of doctors resident last June led to 61,989 people hospitalized and ambulatory reprogrammed.

Since the end of 2022, nearly 1.5 million appointments have been reported following an industrial action.

The BMA said on Tuesday that talks with the government aimed at avoiding the strike had collapsed on the issue of remuneration for remuneration.

Dr. Melissa Ryan and Dr. Ross Nieuwoudt, co -presidents of the BMA resident doctors’ committee, said in a statement: “We have always said that no doctor wanted to strike and everything it would take to prevent it from being a credible path to pay the restoration offered by the government.

“We have had good -faith talks, eager to explore real solutions to the problems facing the doctors resident today.

“Unfortunately, we have not received an offer that would meet these challenges.

“While we were happy to discuss the problems without payment that affects the finances of doctors, we have always been frank that it is basis a remuneration dispute.”

Secretary of health Wes Street said “We cannot evolve after a salary increase of 28.9%”, but added that the government was considering means to improve the professional life of resident doctors.

He said that there was an opportunity for the union “to work with us on a range of options that would have made a real difference for the working conditions of resident doctors and created additional roles to deal with the bottlenecks that hold their career progress.

“Instead, they opted for recklessly and unnecessarily make an action. “”

He added: “All my attention will now be in terms of prejudice to patients and to support NHS staff at work.

“After an increase in salary of 28.9% in the last three years and the highest increase in remuneration in the public sector two consecutive years, strike action is completely unjustified, completely unprecedented in the history of British unionism and shows a complete disdain for patients and the broader recovery of the NHS.”

He came after research suggested that public support for the strike is discouraged.

A Yougov survey has shown that around half (52%) of people in the United Kingdom “somewhat oppose those” (20%) or “strongly oppose” (32%) to doctors resident on strike.

A third (34%) of the 4,954 adults interviewed, either “a little support” (23%) or “strongly supported” doctor strikes (11%).

Yougov said that the proportion supporting the wage strike has dropped five points since its last possibility of a question in May, when 48% opposed strikes and 39% supported them.

Daniel Elkeles, managing director of NHS suppliers, said the decision for strikes to continue “is a crushing blow for patients and for the NHS”.

Resident doctors are qualified doctors in clinical training.

They have obtained a medical diploma and can have up to nine years of professional experience as a hospital doctor, according to their specialty, or up to five years of work and gain experience to become a general practitioner.