The NHS in London will prioritise urgent and emergency care again this bank holiday weekend and is urging Londoners to use services wisely as industrial action enters its sixth month.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has announced strike action will start today (Sunday 30 April) at 8pm and finish on Monday at midnight.
Nursing is the largest percentage of the NHS workforce – making up a quarter of NHS staff. This latest action will involve nursing staff working in emergency departments, intensive care units, cancer care and other services.
The RCN has agreed to some mitigations to maintain life and limb care which can be viewed on their website. This will not be the equivalent of full staffing but is needed to preserve life.
To ensure safe care continues to be available for those in life-threatening situations, NHS staff across the capital will prioritise emergency and urgent care over some routine appointments and procedures and patients should expect to experience longer waits for care during strikes.
Following the recent junior doctors strike which saw nearly 55,000 appointments rescheduled in the capital, and with the number of rescheduled appointments set to hit half a million across the country next week, the NHS is again facing significant disruption during the already stretched bank holiday weekend.
Appointments and operations will only be cancelled where unavoidable and patients will be offered an alternative date as soon as possible.
Jane Clegg, Chief Nurse for the NHS in London said: “”We are now in the sixth month of industrial action in the NHS and, while we have been preparing extensively across London, there is no doubt that there will be a significant impact on our services this weekend.
“Beyond these days of action there is also an ongoing impact – as more pressure is put on NHS staff and some Londoners experience delays in their care.
“Staffing levels for some parts of London will be exceptionally low. That’s why we’re asking Londoners – use NHS 111 online, pharmacies and GP services for non urgent care and only call 999 in a life-threatening emergency.
Over the long weekend some GP surgeries and pharmacies will be open for patients to get appointments or health advice. Pharmacies open over the long weekend can be found on the NHS Find a Pharmacy site.
