As thousands of junior doctors started a six-day walkout on Wednesday morning, experts stated that the longest strike in NHS history “couldn’t come at a worse time.”
Hospital administrators declared that junior doctors in England are taking to picketing, saying that the health care is “in the grip of peak winter pressure.”
The “unprecedented” measure, according to NHS Providers, will cause thousands of patients’ care to be delayed.
The group, which speaks for NHS trusts, threatened to take further health workers on strike and demanded a speedy settlement to the conflict between the government and junior doctors.
The industrial action, which is scheduled to run from Wednesday at 7 a.m. to Tuesday, January 9, takes place during one of the busiest periods of the year for the NHS, when it is dealing with a spike in the number of individuals seeking help after delaying it over the holidays and winter viruses.
Up to half of England’s medical workforce may go on strike as a result of the strike action, which the NHS has warned might result in “the most difficult start to the year the NHS has ever faced.”
It stated that nearly all routine care will be impacted by the strikes and that emergency and urgent care will be given priority.
But patients are being urged to still come forward to seek care if they need it.
Age UK has warned that the threat of strikes could deter elderly people from seeking care when they need it.
The charity also said it will be “difficult to guarantee safe and effective care for everyone who needs it”.
The government increased junior physicians’ pay in England by 8.8% on average in the summer of 2023, but doctors felt this was insufficient and intensified their strike action.
In an attempt to end the impasse, the government and junior physicians started discussions late last year. However, after five weeks of discussions, the talks broke down, and the doctors called for additional strikes.