Junior doctors prepare for 48-hour walkout

JUNIOR doctors will walk out on strike tomorrow (Wednesday) as a row over changes to their contracts rumbles on.

Members of the British Medical Association (BMA), including those at Rotherham Hospital, will begin a 48-hour walkout at 8am tomorrow.

The BMA claim health secretary Jeremy Hunt failed to undertake an equality impact assessment (EIA) prior to the government imposing terms and conditions on junior doctors.

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The changes include the curbing of junior doctors’ pay package and changes to what is classed as “unsociable hours.”

Guaranteed pay increases linked to time in the job are also expected to be scrapped and replaced with a system linked to progression through set training stages.

Dr Johann Malawa, BMA junior doctors’ committee chairman, said: “This is yet another example of the incompetence which the government has demonstrated throughout its handling of the dispute.

“Imposing this contract will seriously undermine the ability of the NHS to recruit and retain junior doctors in areas of medicine with the most unsocial areas, where there are already staffing shortages.

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”The strike action, which will involve all junior doctors, except those on-call to provide emergency cover, will take place from 8am on Wednesday until 8am on Friday.”

A spokesman for Rotherham Hospital said: “As with the previous industrial action related to the junior doctors' dispute, we are undertaking detailed planning to minimise the effects on patients.

“We will have more details about the impact of the strike in Rotherham closer to the time of the action.”

The BMA also plans to hold two further 48-hour strike from April 6 to 8 and April 26 to 28.