Junior doctors have been granted permission to work at some hospitals during a looming strike in order to prevent potentially dangerous delays to cancer care, the British Medical Association has 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 due to a Russian cyber-attack that has resulted in cancer surgeries having to be postponed.
In regards to the decision, the BMA said on X that a derogation would be granted for surgical registrars with regard to high-risk upper gastrointestinal, head and neck, and lung cancers across the trusts.
To prevent dangerous delays to cancer care, we are granting a derogation for surgical registrars working on high-risk upper GI, head and neck, and lung cancers at 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 to their care due to the difficulties of mitigation against the unplanned and malicious cyber-attack. We thank NHS England for raising their concerns with us in the interest of patient safety.
“The derogation only applies to surgical registrars in upper GI, head and neck, and lung cancer services at the three trusts listed. All other junior doctors, including at these trusts, still can and should strike.”
The strikes, which are due to take place from 27 June to 2 July, are part of a long-running dispute over pay between junior doctors in England and the government.
Prof Philip Banfield, the chair of BMA council, said: “Safe patient care has always been a priority for the BMA during the rounds of industrial action; ensured by giving trusts plenty of notice of the planned strikes, so that more senior doctors provide cover across 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 across London where the recent cyber-attack have crippled access to life saving surgery.
He added: “NHS England raised concerns with us about patient safety at these hospitals, and we are pleased that we have been able to come to an agreement which means this group of patients will not suffer any further delays during the strike action.”
Prof 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, while the warmer weather can lead to additional pressure on services at a time when demand for services is already high.
“As ever, we are working to ensure urgent and emergency care is prioritised for patients, but there is no doubt that it becomes harder each time to bring routine services back on track following strikes, and the cumulative effect for patients, staff and the NHS as a whole is enormous.”
