Advice for upcoming doctors’ strike - July 2023
The British Medical Association (BMA), British Dental Association (BDA) and Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association (HCSA) have announced 120 hours of continuous junior doctors’ strike action from 07:00 on Thursday 13 July until 07:00 on Tuesday 18 July.
The BMA and BDA has announced that consultant doctors and dentists will be taking strike action for 48 hours from 07:00 on Thursday 20 July until 07:00 on Saturday 22 July. During the two days of action, both BMA and BDA have advised that consultants will provide Christmas Day cover, meaning they will continue to provide all emergency services, but routine services will need to be impacted.
The NHS is asking patients to choose services appropriately during industrial action and take simple steps to help ensure care is available to patients who need it most. This includes using 111 online as the first port of call for health needs, and only using 999 if it is a life-threatening emergency.
We will only reschedule appointments and procedures where necessary and will rebook immediately, where possible. Unfortunately, these strikes will have a significant impact upon planned and routine care.
If you have an appointment with us, please attend unless you hear from us. There is no need to check – we will be in touch with your directly if we need to rearrange your appointment.
We are still here to support you throughout this time. If you are known to our community mental health team, you can contact them as usual. There is also our 24/7 mental health crisis helpline which you can call free, any time, day or night if you need urgent help. The number is: 0800 953 0285.
We also have a number of self-help resources on our website which you may also find useful.
GP practices will continue to be open during the junior doctors and consultants strikes. Please continue to attend your GP and dental appointments, unless you are contacted and told otherwise.
For more information on when to call 999 and when to go to A&E, you can visit the NHS UK website.
Ahead of the industrial action, the advice for anyone that is travelling to other areas is to:
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Make sure you have ordered and collected any repeat medicines, especially if you are travelling
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Remember that your first port of call for GP care is your home practice, which will be able to provide online, phone and video consultations as well as arranging for prescriptions to be sent to any pharmacy you choose.
We appreciate the public’s understanding and co-operation during this challenging period.
