BMA says NHS plan for doctors’ strikes will put patients at risk | Doctors
The British Medical Association (BMA) said that the NHS plan to treat strikes from resident doctors would endanger patient safety.
Up to 50,000 doctors resident in England, formerly known as the junior doctors, should join the industrial action from 7 a.m. on Friday July 25 at 7 a.m. on Wednesday July 30. They require a salary increase of 29%.
A few days before the start of strikes, the BMA, the union against doctors, criticized the changes in the way the health service is preparing.
During previous strikes, the urgent and emergency services were equipped with doctors of the High Hospital, including consultants and pre-plane works have been largely postponed. But the BMA said that hospital managers had been invited to continue with non -urgent care scheduled for the next dispute.
In a letter to the CEO of the NHS, Sir Jim Mackey, the president of the BMA council, Dr. Tom Dolphin, and the deputy chairman of the Council, Dr. Emma Runswick, said: “Your decision to ask hospitals to manage non -urgent care extends the secure endowment in full and risk not only the safety of patients in urgent and emergency situations.
“Consultants cannot safely provide the choice of care and coverage to residents at the same time. We therefore strongly urge you to reconsider your instructions to hospitals, which should now prepare to postpone a non -urgent non -urgent activity in order to provide a safe emergency and emergency service in accordance with the available personnel levels. ”
The latest series of strikes, which included debraying by other health workers, came at an estimated cost of 1.5 billion sterling pounds to the NHS in England, with appointments, procedures and operations of 1.5 million people postponed as a result of stops.
During the previous strikes, a process of “derogation” was operational by which hospitals could ask striking doctors to return to work in the event of risk for patient safety.
The BMA said it was “engaged” in the process but not to facilitate non -urgent work.
When asked why the BMA could not avoid strikes, Runswick said that BBC Radio 4 debraying could be delivered safely if expected. “Doctors’ strikes do not have to be risky,” she said. “Doctors’ strikes were managed safely in 2016 and 2022, 2023, 2024.
“We are entirely able to run safely – they simply have to be planned with local medical leadership, and we have already done so. We can start again. “
She said that the BMA still hoped that a resolution could be reached before the start of the raising and was “eager to work with the NHS in England to make sure they are better planned for the safest care”.
The talks between the government and the BMA have continued in recent days, with the health secretary, Wes Street, excluding any additional salary increase this year, but indicating other aspects of the contract – such as student debt, examination fees and working conditions – could be negotiating.
Professor Meghana Pandit, co-national medical director of NHS in England for secondary care, said: “The safest thing for patients is that the NHS maintains as much urgent and planned care as possible during strikes, and we will encourage the BMA to work with us in a constructive manner to achieve it in the event of an industrial action.”
Previous strikes ended last September, when the members of the resident doctor voted to accept a government compensation agreement worth 22.3% on average over two years.
Under the 2025-26 remuneration agreement, resident doctors received an increase of 4% plus £ 750 on a consolidated basis “, which worked as an average increase of 5.4%.
Government representatives said these two increases were equivalent to a salary increase of 28.9%. The BMA said that resident doctors needed an increase of 29.2% to reverse the erosion of remuneration since 2008-2009.
