Junior doctors have been allowed to work in some hospitals during a threatened strike to avoid potentially dangerous delays in cancer care, the British Medical Association said.
The six hospitals where some junior doctors will be allowed to work during the industrial action are all part of the NHS trusts Lewisham and Greenwich, Guy’s and St Thomas’, and King’s College Hospital, which are experiencing delays following a Russian cyberattack that has led to cancer operations being postponed.
With regard to the decision, the BMA said on X that a derogation would be granted to surgical registrars in relation to high-risk upper gastrointestinal, head and neck and lung cancers in the trusts.
To avoid dangerous delays in cancer care, we are granting a derogation to surgical registrars working on high-risk upper GI, head and neck and lung cancers in three hospital trusts: Lewisham and Greenwich, Guys & St Thomas’ and Kings College Hospital. 1/3
— The BMA (@TheBMA) June 25, 2024
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To avoid dangerous delays in cancer care, we are granting a derogation to surgical registrars working on high-risk upper GI, head and neck and lung cancers in three hospital trusts: Lewisham and Greenwich, Guys & St Thomas’ and Kings College Hospital. 1/3
— The BMA (@TheBMA) June 25, 2024
It added: “This will help patients who have experienced dangerous delays in their care due to the difficulties in mitigating the unplanned and malicious cyber attack. We thank NHS England for raising their concerns with us in the interests of patient safety.
“The derogation only applies to surgical registrars in the upper GI, head and neck and lung cancer services at the three trusts mentioned. All other junior doctors, including at these trusts, can and should still strike.”
The strikes, which will take place from June 27 to July 2, are part of a long-running dispute over pay between junior doctors in England and the government.
Prof Philip Banfield, chairman of the BMA council, said: “Safe patient care has always been a priority for the BMA during the union rounds; This can be ensured by giving trusts sufficient notice of planned strikes so that more experienced doctors can provide cover during the strike periods. This is why we have agreed with NHS England that a limited number of doctors will be able to work at six sites in London, where the recent cyber attack has crippled access to life-saving surgery.
He added: “NHS England has raised concerns with us about patient safety in these hospitals, and we are pleased to have reached an agreement, which means this group of patients will not experience any further delays during the strike action.”
Professor Stephen Powis, the national medical director of NHS England, said: “This new round of strike action will again hit the NHS very hard, with almost all routine care likely to be affected and services put under significant pressure as the warmer weather could lead to additional pressure on services at a time when demand for services is already high.
“As always, we are working to ensure urgent and emergency care is prioritized for patients, but there is no doubt that it is becoming increasingly difficult to get routine services back on track following strikes, and the cumulative effect on patients, staff and the NHS as a whole is huge.”