Advertisement

Doctors' Strike: 'More Than 2,800' Ops Halted

More than 2,800 operations have been cancelled because of a 24-hour strike by junior doctors in England.

The walkout comes after last-ditch talks between the British Medical Association (BMA) and the Government broke down.

The major point of contention concerns weekend pay and whether Saturdays should be considered an ordinary day of the week, or a day when overtime should be paid.

In November, the Government offered time-and-a-half for hours worked Monday to Sunday between 10pm and 7am; time-and-a-third for between 7pm and 10pm on Saturdays and 7am and 10pm on Sundays.

:: Sky Poll: 74% Of Public Back Junior Doctors

A new offer said doctors would receive an overtime rate from 5pm on Saturdays, rather than the 7pm initially proposed, and higher pay could be offered from 9pm until 7am during Monday to Friday.

This offer has so far been rejected by the BMA.

The BMA says Saturday is not a normal working day and wants junior doctors to be paid more.

Dr Johann Malawana, from the BMA, told Sky News: "Doctors in this country would never take industrial action without just cause, and it's clear that the population of the country are supportive of their doctors.

"They don't want to see their doctors out on industrial action, we don't want to be out on industrial action, what we ask for the Government to do is to stop playing politics with the NHS and with junior doctors and actually address our concerns."

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has suggested he will bring in the new contract for junior doctors unless agreement is reached within the next few weeks.

He said 43% of junior doctors had turned up to work today and that turnout for the "damaging" strike was lower than the first.

Mr Hunt said: "We do need to have resolution on this ... the door is open for discussions and I think what we are proposing is going to mean that the vast majority of doctors don't see their pay cut, in fact many of them will see their pay go up.

"It will mean we can offer better care for patients - surely that's something we should be talking about, not taking this very damaging industrial action."

Analysis by NHS England estimates 1,150 planned inpatient procedures have been cancelled as well as 1,734 day procedures.

Dr Anne Rainsberry, national incident director for NHS England, said: "We will monitor the situation across the country to ensure plans are in place, and people are ready to respond to any significant increases in pressure in any region over the period of this strike."

The hashtag #Iamthedoctorwho was trending on Twitter, as junior doctors visually made their case for industrial action by stating their occupation and their reason for walking out on a placard.

In response, general members of the public who had received help - some, life-saving treatment - in hospital explained why they were supporting the strike action under the #IAmThePatientWho hashtag.

Celebrities including Harry Potter author JK Rowling - who is married to a doctor - comedian and actor Sanjeev Bhaskar and singer Alison Moyet also showed their support for the walkout on social media.

Rowling posted a graphic on Twitter which read "I support the junior doctors #save the NHS", adding: "Speaking as a doctor's wife.."

Almost three quarters of people polled by Sky News said they supported today's walkout.

However, people were unsympathetic too.

Controversial columnist Katie Hopkins expressed her opposition to the strike and wrote: "Junior doctor trying to explain why they need more cash to work a Saturday. 'It's very complex'. No love. It is simple. I diagnose greed."

One person wrote on Twitter: "Do I get paid more for working Saturday or Sunday? Nah."

Another said: "Does anyone really believe that the #JuniorDoctorsStrike is about patient safety? I'm pretty sure it's about their pay packet..."