The NHS is coping well with the doctors' strike in England, the head of the health service says. In a letter to health managers, NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey said while it was still early days in the six-day strike, which began on Tuesday, the NHS was in "as good a place as we could hope" after the first day. Resident doctors – the new name for junior doctors – are taking part in their 15th walkout in the long-running pay dispute.
The British Medical Association said the strike was "regrettable", but blamed the government for failing to put forward a credible offer. Resident doctors make up nearly half the medical workforce – although a third of them are not BMA members. To cope, hospitals have drafted senior doctors in to provide cover in emergency and urgent care.
But that has meant some pre-planned operations and treatments have had to be cancelled, although the NHS said the majority were still taking place. In his letter, Sir Jim said it was "tough for staffing picking up the strain" and the walkout had been "deliberately time to cause havoc" after the Easter weekend. "I know how disruptive and challenging it's been for many hospitals to manage it and fill their rotas following the Easter weekend.
"There's a long way to go, but it looks like we're in as good a place as we could hope on day one." The latest walkout comes after talks with the government broke down last month. Despite receiving pay rises worth 33% over the past four years, the BMA argues doctors are still being paid a fifth less than they were in 2008 once inflation is taken into account. BMA resident doctor leader Dr Jack Fletcher said it was "regrettable" that strike action had been taken again and he was "sorry" for the disruption caused.
But he added: "These strikes were entirely avoidable. If we keep treating doctors as an inconvenience rather than an asset, we will end up with an NHS that simply doesn't have enough doctors." Health Secretary Wes Streeting said resident doctors had been offered a "generous deal". Alongside the pay rises they have had, the government also said it would expand training places and cover out-of-pocket expenses such as exam fees.
On the latest round of strikes, he said: "People and patients are understandably fed up." Latest polling from YouGov shows a majority of the public are opposed to the doctor walkouts. Meanwhile, Conservative party leader Kemi Badenoch said she would ban doctors going on strike "as we already do for the police and armed forces". "Labour has chosen the unions over patients," she said.
