The junior doctors’ contract debate continues to rumble on and the BMA has taken the unusual step of announcing that a strike will take place which will include A & E junior doctors.
The BMA has announced two further strike dates. The first two day strike will start on 6 April and will cover all doctors except A & E doctors who will work as usual; the second strike announced for 26-27 April will involve the withdrawal of A & E junior doctors in addition to all other junior doctors in an unprecedented move. This action is the first of its kind in the history of the NHS and demonstrates the lengths to which junior doctors are willing to go to defend their position.
The chairman of BMA’s junior doctor committee said of the action: ‘No junior doctor wants to take this action but the government has left us with no choice. In refusing to listen to junior doctors’ outstanding concerns, the government will bear direct responsibility for the first full walkout of doctors in this country.’
Quite who history will blame for this strike and the set of events that has lead negotiations to this impasse has yet to be decided. In this game of chess between the Government and junior doctors surely something or someone has got to give soon?
