The BMA and BDA have announced that consultant doctors and dentists will be taking strike action for 48 hours from 07:00 on Thursday 20 July until 07:00 on Saturday 22 July.
The action by consultants follows on from the longest period of industrial action in NHS history by junior doctors (five consecutive days), which started last Thursday and ended on Tuesday morning.
In contrast to strike action among other staff groups, no other clinicians can provide cover for consultants, so any planned care delivered by junior doctors or other healthcare professionals that requires even remote consultant supervision will need to be rescheduled. This means a significant amount of planned care involving junior doctors will be affected.
The NHS is working hard to prioritise resources to protect emergency treatment, critical care, neonatal care, maternity, and trauma, and ensure we prioritise patients who have waited the longest for elective care and cancer surgery. We will only reschedule appointments and procedures where necessary and will rebook immediately, where possible. Unfortunately, these strikes will have a significant impact upon planned and routine care.
If we have not contacted you, please attend your appointment as planned. The NHS will contact you if your appointment needs to be rescheduled due to strike action.
The NHS is asking patients to choose services appropriately during industrial action and take simple steps to help ensure care is available to patients who need it most. This includes using 111 online as the first port of call for health needs, and only using 999 if it is a life-threatening emergency.
Regardless of any strike action taking place, it is really important that patients who need urgent medical care continue to come forward as normal, especially in emergency and life-threatening cases - when someone is seriously ill or injured, or their life is at risk.
Ahead of the industrial action, the advice for anyone that is travelling to other areas is to:
- Make sure you have ordered and collected any repeat medicines, especially if you are travelling
- Remember that your first port of call for GP care is your home practice, which will be able to provide online, phone and video consultations as well as arranging for prescriptions to be sent to any Pharmacy you choose
GP practices will continue to be open during the junior doctors strike. Please continue to attend your GP and dental appointments, unless you are contacted and told otherwise.
For more information on when to call 999 and when to visit A&E, you can visit the NHS website.
FAQs
What is happening?
Trade unions representing some NHS staff are in dispute with the Government over the 2022/23 pay award. A number of the unions have balloted their NHS members to take part in industrial action. As a result members of the following unions have advised of plans to take strike action on the dates listed below:
- 20 July – From 07:00 BMA and BDA consultants** out on strike across England.
- 21 July – All day, BMA and BDA consultants** out on strike across England
- 22 July – Until 07:00, BMA and BDA consultants ** out on strike across England
** BDA consultants action will be taking place in 40 trusts
What if I need urgent or emergency care?
Anyone who needs urgent care should use NHS111 online to be assessed and directed to the right care for them. If you do not have internet access then 111 helpline is available. When someone is seriously ill or injured and their life is at risk, you should seek emergency care in the normal way, by calling 999.
Can the NHS provide safe services during strikes?
The NHS is working hard to minimise the risk to patient safety. This means we will prioritise resources to protect emergency treatment, critical care, neonatal care, maternity, and trauma, and ensure we prioritise patients who have waited the longest for elective care and cancer surgery. BMA has said that during consultant strikes a Christmas day level of service will be provided, meaning emergency care will continue to be available. We will only reschedule appointments and procedures where it is necessary and will rebook immediately, where possible. Unfortunately, these strikes will have a significant impact upon planned and routine care.
What will this mean for appointments?
During strike action we will prioritise emergency treatment and patients seeking urgent treatment will be seen. Unfortunately, this means we may have to prioritise emergency care over some routine appointments and procedures. Everyone who has an appointment should attend as planned, unless your local NHS provider has contacted you to reschedule. If we have not contacted you, please attend your appointment even if your Trust is affected by strikes.
When will I find out if my appointment is rescheduled?
The NHS will contact you if your appointment needs to be rescheduled due to strike action. This is likely to be a text, phone call or a letter and you should be offered an alternative date for your appointment. If we have not contacted you, please attend your appointment as planned.
If my appointment is rescheduled, will I be put back to the bottom of the waiting list?
Any appointments that need to be rescheduled will be done so as a priority.
Will dentists be impacted?
The British Dental Association has advised that some of their members who work in hospitals on trainee contracts or as consultants will take action. However, the vast majority of dentists (those not based in hospitals) will not be impacted. Please continue to attend any dental appointments unless you are contacted and told otherwise.
Is there anything I should do now?
To avoid delays in getting your medicines or the risk of running out of medicines during strikes please order prescriptions in good time.
