Resident doctors across the Humber region will begin their latest round of industrial action in December as part of their long-running pay dispute with the Government.
Members of the BMA will take industrial action for the fourteenth time in the form of a full walkout for five days – from 7am on Wednesday 17 December until 7am on Monday 22 December.
Staff at Castle Hill, Hull, Grimsby, Goole and Scunthorpe hospitals have put plans in place to prepare for the strike, which does mean unfortunately some patients will have their appointments and procedures postponed. Affected patients will be contacted in advance. Anyone with an appointment or procedure scheduled to take place during the strike period should attend the hospital as planned if you don’t hear from our team.
Matt Powls, Interim Group Chief Delivery Officer for NHS Humber Health Partnership, said: “Patient safety is of course our top priority during this latest period of industrial action and we are putting contingency plans in place to ensure disruption to patients is as minimal as possible.
“We’ll be prioritising urgent and emergency care and cancer services, so those patients who need us the most, and patients staying with us as inpatients will continue to receive care. However, to be able to do all that with fewer doctors on shift, we do need to postpone some routine and planned care appointments. This is regrettable, but necessary to allow us to focus on the most seriously ill/injured of our patients.
“We fully appreciate that for some patients, they will be seeing their appointments with us postponed and not for the first time. We know just how frustrating this is and we’d like to extend our apologies to anyone affected, we’ll be working to get you rebooked as soon as possible.”
“Our staff are well rehearsed at putting plans in place to prepare for industrial action, however we know that five days of industrial action will place further pressure on our services which are already under considerable pressure. As with previous strikes we’d really appreciate the support of our local communities.
“GP surgeries and pharmacies will remain open during the strike. NHS 111 staff are on hand to offer advice if you’re unwell and unsure where to turn. If you do need to come into one of our emergency departments please be mindful that we have fewer doctors on shift so be prepared to wait to be seen and please respect our staff who are in work who are doing their best to see and treat people as quickly as possible.”
Patients can also help themselves and others by:
- Ordering repeat prescriptions in plenty of time so they don’t run out of medication or other essential items
- Avoiding hospital if suffering Norovirus-type symptoms such as diarrhoea and vomiting, or with cold or flu-like symptoms
- Keeping a well-stocked medicine cabinet at home including painkillers, indigestion remedies and diarrhoea tablets
- Using the NHS Emergency Prescription Service if a regular medication runs out completely; and
- Familiarising themselves with nearby NHS services which can offer help both in and out-of-hours; these include all Walk-In and Urgent Treatment Centres and a number of local pharmacies. NHS111 remains available 24hrs/day, 365 day a year for medical advice and signposting, online or over the phone.
Full details of alternative local healthcare services can be found at www.letsgetbetter.co.uk