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A dispute has arisen between NHS England officials and the British Medical Association regarding the extent of coverage that will be provided during a five-day strike by doctors. NHS England has instructed hospitals to only postpone non-essential care, such as hip and knee operations, in extraordinary circumstances. However, the BMA has cautioned that this decision could jeopardize patients’ safety as it would result in non-striking doctors being thinly spread to manage emergency services. The walkout by resident doctors – formerly known as junior doctors – is scheduled to commence at 07:00 BST on Friday, with the BMA representing 48,000 resident doctor members, constituting about two-thirds of the workforce.
In previous strikes in 2023 and 2024, a significant amount of non-urgent work was cancelled to enable senior doctors to cover emergency and urgent services. This shift in approach is being overseen by Sir Jim Mackey, who assumed the role of chief executive of NHS England after Amanda Pritchard’s departure earlier this year. NHS England sources emphasized Sir Jim’s commitment to minimizing disruptions, highlighting the potential risks to patients associated with cancelling non-essential procedures. During a meeting with NHS England, the BMA expressed its concerns by formally addressing a letter to Sir Jim, urging that hospital care should be adjusted based on the available staff levels during strike days.
NHS England issued a directive to hospital managers last week stipulating that rescheduling non-urgent care should only occur in exceptional circumstances and with their approval. Following discussions between NHS England and the BMA, the union corresponded with Sir Jim, asserting that the instruction to hospitals to proceed with non-urgent planned care on strike days could compromise safe staffing levels. NHS England’s co-medical director, Prof Meghana Pandit, underscored the importance of maintaining urgent and planned care as much as possible during strikes for patient safety, and encouraged collaborative efforts with the BMA to achieve this. Negotiations between the government and BMA are ongoing in an attempt to prevent the impending strike, with discussions initiated since Thursday. Resident doctors were granted a 5.4% pay increase for the current financial year, following a cumulative 22% raise over the past two years. Despite this, the BMA contends that wages remain approximately 20% lower in real terms than in 2008 and is advocating for “pay restoration.” Health Secretary Wes Streeting has made it clear that there will be no additional pay increase this year, but areas under consideration include student debts, exam fees, and working practices. To avert significant disruption, any decision to call off the strike would need to be taken before Wednesday morning. Throughout 2023 and 2024, resident doctors participated in 11 separate strikes, resulting in the cancellation of numerous outpatient appointments and hospital procedures
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