The strike will begin on Tuesday and run until early Saturday, causing immense pressures on staff and services.
NHS England has estimated that the strike could affect approximately 250,000 patients. Despite the disruptions, appointments and operations will only be cancelled where it is unavoidable. NHS England has been preparing extensively for the strike, but managing additional pressure becomes much more difficult over time, due to the sheer number of appointments that need to be rescheduled and the involvement of multiple teams. Patients whose appointments have not been postponed are urged to continue to come forward.
The strike seeks to resolve 15 years of “pay erosion,” as junior doctors have reportedly lost more than 25% of their pay in real terms, according to the British Medical Association (BMA). The BMA demands that the health secretary negotiate and make a “credible” pay offer.
The Department for Health and Social Care, on the other hand, wants the strikes cancelled before it will engage in negotiations. Health Secretary Steve Barclay criticised the BMA’s position in The Sunday Telegraph, stating that the organization’s demand is widely out of step with pay settlements in other parts of the public sector. He also stated that an additional salary hike of this size would have some junior doctors receiving more than $20,000 extra a year, which he considers unreasonable.
The BMA’s deputy co-chair of the Junior Doctors Committee, Dr Mike Greenhalgh, urged the health secretary to make a credible offer that could still avert the action even at this late stage.
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