Health bosses issue plea to public as junior doctors prepare for 72-hour walkout
Emergency care will be prioritised when junior doctors begin a 72-hour walkout on Wednesday in a bitter dispute over pay, the region's health bosses have said.
Patients are being reminded that the NHS will still be available for urgent and emergency care, but are being asked to use services wisely.
Junior doctors are expected to go on strike from 7am on Wednesday to 7am on Saturday.
Health organisations in the region say they are working together to prepare for the industrial action but are asking the public for their support.
For life-saving emergencies people are being asked to call 999 but otherwise they are urged to use 111 online as the first port of call.
Pharmacies, GP appointments, walk-in centres, minor injury units and urgent treatment centres will continue to be available during the industrial action.
Patients with hospital appointments are being asked to attend unless they are contacted directly.
Dr Ananta Dave, chief medical officer for the NHS Black Country Integrated Care Board, said: “Regardless of any strike action taking place, it is important that patients who need urgent medical care continue to come forward as normal, especially in emergency and life-threatening cases.
“If you need medical help or advice, you should contact NHS 111 in the first instance, and they will direct you to the most appropriate service for advice or treatment. This could include your local pharmacy, GP or a local NHS walk-in centre.
“By ensuring you choose the most appropriate service, this will help NHS services to manage demand and ensure A&E departments can focus on treating people with serious and life-threatening conditions."
Julian Hobbs, medical director at Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Our number one priority is to ensure that those in greatest need continue to have access to high quality care during the industrial action this week.
“Staff are working hard to minimise disruption to care and treatment, and to support one another, however junior doctors make up a significant portion of the workforce in hospitals so there will be an impact on services and waiting times in A&E are expected to be much longer than usual.
“We’d like to thank people for their patience and their ongoing support by using NHS services appropriately.”
NHS 111 can be contacted online at 111.nhs.uk or by calling 111.
The BMA junior doctors committee has called for a 35 per cent hike in wages, a demand branded “unreasonable” by Health Secretary Steve Barclay, who said there must be “movement on both sides” of the dispute.
The Government has been locked in a series of disputes with unions over pay and working conditions in the NHS since last year, resulting in a wave of strike action across the health service.
