British Medical Association (BMA) Strike 13-15 March 2023

From 7am on Monday 13 March, many of our medical colleagues begin a 72 hour strike which will end on Thursday morning at 7am.

This industrial action will have a significant impact on hospital services. Hospital teams have been working hard to minimise the impact, but some procedures will regrettably be cancelled as a result.

During strike action we will prioritise resources to protect emergency treatment, critical care, neonatal care, and trauma. We will only cancel appointments and procedures where it is necessary and will reschedule immediately, where possible.

We will be in touch with anyone whose appointment is cancelled. If we have not been in touch, please attend as indicated in your appointment letter.

It’s very likely disruption to services will continue into Thursday and Friday, so please bear with us if this is the case. We thank you for your patience and understanding, and would like to reassure you that, as always, patient safety remains our absolute priority throughout the Trust.

Regardless of any strike action taking place, it is really important that patients who need urgent medical care continue to come forward as normal, especially in emergency and life-threatening cases – when someone is seriously ill or injured, or their life is at risk. We expect the will be significant delays in the Emergency Department as patients will be seen according to their immediate needs.

We ask patients to use services wisely during these three days of 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 continuing to only use 999 if it is a life-threatening emergency.

If you need medical help or advice, or you are unsure about whether you should go to hospital, go to NHS 111 online unless it is a life-threatening emergency when you should still call 999.

For more information on when to call 999 and when to go to A&E, you can visit the NHS UK website.