Junior doctor strike: what does it mean for our hospitals and your appointment?
Next week, junior doctors across England are striking.
Junior doctors make up half of the medical workforce at our trust and include doctors ranging from those who have recently finished medical school, up to doctors with 10 years' experience.
Junior doctors help our hospitals run smoothly by leading on essential parts of your care. Their roles range from ordering tests or x-rays and referring patients to other medical teams, to discharging patients from hospital and reviewing sick or deteriorating patients, but there's a lot more to the job than that.
During the industrial action, our consultants will be taking on the work of our junior doctors, supported by our nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals. This means that we will be very busy during this time and you may experience longer waiting times than usual.
So that we can prioritise emergency care for those who urgently need it, we have rescheduled some appointments due to take place during the strike action. We are contacting you if your appointment needs to be rescheduled.
If we do not contact you, please attend your appointment as planned. If you have a life-threatening condition, you can still call 999 or visit our accident and emergency departments.
If you are pregnant and have any concerns about the health of yourself or your baby you should still visit your maternity unit.
If you need medical help for something that isn’t life-threatening, you can still:
- use NHS 111
- speak to your GP
- visit your local pharmacy