Junior doctors strike in Havering and Redbridge
Striking Junior doctors on the picket line at the Queen's Hospital, Rom Valley Way, Romford. - Credit: Archant
Patients who receive care from Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals Trust are warned that they may have to wait longer than normal, as the junior doctors strike gets underway.
Striking Junior doctors on the picket line at the Queen's Hospital, Rom Valley Way, Romford. - Credit: Archant
Junior doctors set up a picket line by the roundabout outside Queen’s Hospital, Rom Valley Way, in an ongoing dispute over proposed contract changes with the government, on Tuesday morning.
Patients were warned they may have to wait longer than usual - and should seek help elsewhere if it wasn’t an emergency as the striking doctors provided “emergency care only” for 24 hours from 8am.
At the protest, Simon Fleming, 32, an orthopaedic registrar at BHRUT, said the action was necessary to ensure public safety.
He said: “Today’s strike is sad but necessary to protect the NHS, it’s patients and its doctors.
“Removal of vital safeguards, the extension of standard hours and the changes to pay will all chip away at the amazing service junior doctors currently want to continue to provide.
“We all hope negotiations are eventually successful, but we do this for our patients and for a safer NHS.”
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Urgent, same day appointments with a GP can be booked by calling 020 3770 1888, NHS111 or by calling your GP practice.
Dr Aggarwal, chair of Havering CCG said: “If you feel unwell, or have an injury there are lots of options to choose from for professional medical treatment and advice.
“If you’re not sure where is best to go for treatment call NHS111 and they will advise you.
“During strike days patients in need of urgent and emergency care will continue to receive the treatment they need, when they need it.
“To make sure we can focus on treating those who need it most we need the public to help us by only coming to A&E with genuine life-threatening emergencies.
“Those needing less urgent care may wait longer than normal to be seen.”
Chief executive Matthew Hopkins said: “Our overriding priority is to ensure we continue to provide high standards of patient safety and care at all times.”
“We intend to put in place measures that will enable us to make real-time assessments of staffing levels, ensure a quick response to any issues that might develop, and allow us to continue to provide safe and compassionate care to all our patients.
“Junior doctors are a very important part of our multi-disciplinary teams and we value the huge contribution they make to patient care.”
