Junior doctor industrial action 20-23 December 2023
The British Medical Association (BMA) and Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association (HCSA) have announced junior doctors and dental trainees will take strike action from 7am on Wednesday 20 December 2023 until 7am on Saturday 23 December 2023.
Further strikes from 7am on Wednesday 3 January 2024 until 7am on Tuesday 9 January 2024 have also been announced. The involvement of HSCA Junior doctors in the action in January is subject to the outcome of the ongoing ballot of their members.
This is part of an ongoing dispute between junior doctors and government.
Junior doctors make up around half of all doctors in the NHS. Junior doctors are qualified doctors who have anywhere up to eight years’ experience working as a hospital doctor, depending on their specialty, or up to three years in general practice.
During these strikes, other doctors (including consultants and other specialist doctors) will still be working. University Hospitals of North Midlands is working hard to ensure adequate staffing through the entirety of urgent care pathways, urgent elective cases, and other critical services.
However, the disruption to staffing will cause a significant reduction in elective activity and this may mean some appointments and procedures may need to be rescheduled. We will only reschedule appointments and procedures where necessary and will rebook immediately, where possible.
If we have not contacted you, please attend your appointment as planned.
Patients should 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 serious or life-threatening emergency.
More information on when to go to A&E is available here
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.
Dr Matthew Lewis, UHNM Medical Director, said: “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 serious life-threatening cases – when someone is seriously ill or injured, or their life is at risk.
“It is inevitable that some appointments, including surgeries, may need to be postponed or rearranged. Priority will be given to those patients with the most pressing health needs. We will contact you if your appointment needs to be rescheduled due to strike action, either by text or phone. If we have not contacted you, please attend your appointment as planned.”
If you are travelling to other parts of the country this Christmas please see the advice below:
- If you’re staying in England and are away from home and need a GP appointment for routine treatment, please call your own surgery. Your surgery is used to helping by phone, video, and email. And if you need a prescription, they can send it to any pharmacy you choose.
- Make sure you have enough of your prescribed medications. You can easily order repeat prescriptions via the NHS App, though your GP practice website or, if you do not have access to GP online services, by calling your GP practice.
- Ensure you have a fully stocked first aid kit at home or with you. Find out what you need on the nhs.uk website at this link: https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/accidents-first-aid-and-treatments/what-should-i-keep-in-my-first-aid-kit/