Patients warned to expect disruption as doctor strike begins

Patients are being told to expect disruption as doctors begin five-day strike in England; NHS bosses say they are struggling to keep many services running, as was the case during recent strikes.

NHS England said non-urgent services would be affected by the strike, which started at 7am on Wednesday, as the flu wave puts pressure on hospitals.

This was the 14th walkout of junior doctors, the new name for junior doctors in the long-running pay dispute.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the strike was timed to cause the most damage to the NHS and put patients at risk, but the British Medical Association said it would work with NHS bosses to ensure safety.

The strike followed last-minute talks between the two sides on Tuesday afternoon.

The meeting was described as “constructive” by the government, but did not make sufficient progress to end the strike.

Junior doctors represent almost half of doctors working in the NHS. They will leave both urgent and non-urgent care with senior doctors assigned to provide cover.

During the two most recent strikes, in July and November, NHS England said it was able to continue most non-urgent surgeries and treatments, such as hip and knee replacements.

But NHS England said it expected more disruption this time. Concerns have also been raised that hospitals may struggle to discharge patients in time for Christmas as working doctors concentrate on providing strike cover.

Medical director Prof Meghana Pandit said: “These strikes come at an extremely challenging time for the NHS, with record numbers of flu patients being admitted to hospital for this time of year.

“Staff will come together as always, going above and beyond to provide safe care to patients and limit disruption.

“But unfortunately more patients will feel the impact of this round of strikes than the previous two strikes, and on-duty staff will not get the Christmas break they deserve with their families.”

Streeting added: “We have been working to prevent these strike actions until now.

“Everyone knows that the period leading up to Christmas and New Year is always the busiest time for the NHS. “This year it’s harder because of the super flu.

“And this double whammy of flu plus strikes means there is now an additional burden on other NHS staff.”

NHS England said GP surgeries will remain open and urgent and urgent care services will be available for those who need them.

But even then, some disruption is likely. Cheltenham General Hospital’s emergency department It is closing for emergencies during the strike – it will remain open for minor injuries – patients are advised to use the nearby Gloucestershire Royal Infirmary.

NHS England says public should use 111 online As the first port of call for urgent but non-life-threatening issues during a strike.

It also said patients needing urgent medical care should continue to use 999 or attend A&E as normal.

The strike continues despite a new proposal made by the government last week to increase the number of specialist training positions and cover out-of-pocket costs such as exam fees.

Residency training jobs, which junior doctors start in their third year of training after completing medical school, have become highly competitive.

This year, 30,000 applicants applied for 10,000 jobs; However, some of the applicants were doctors from abroad.

Dr Tom Twentyman is one of those who lost out after trying to find an emergency medicine position. Finding a job was “an absolute nightmare,” he says.

He has struggled to find work since then, juggling a handful of on-call shifts each month while also applying for more than 40 short-term contracts at hospitals across the country, one of which he has now secured.

However, since this will not count towards her education, she will consider reapplying next year.

“Some job postings were going down within two hours of receiving 650 applications, which is a huge number to shortlist,” he says.

On Monday the BMA announced its members had voted to continue the strike (effectively rejecting the offer in the process) after the union agreed to hold an online members’ survey.

BMA junior doctor leader Dr. Jack Fletcher described it as a “vocal response” and said the government needed to go further on jobs as well as wages.

Streeting suggested he would not discuss salaries because doctors have received pay rises of around 30 per cent in the last three years.

The BMA argues that despite the pay rises, junior doctors’ salaries are still a fifth lower than in 2008 when inflation is taken into account.

Dr Fletcher added: “It is long past time for ministers to produce a truly long-term plan.

“If they can provide a clear path over a few years to raise wages responsibly and provide enough new jobs to replace recycled ones, then there will be no need for further strikes for the rest of this government.”

But the BMA said it was committed to ensuring patient safety.

“We will be in close contact with NHS England throughout the strikes if safety concerns arise,” the union added.