Hospitals are bracing themselves for “exceptionally low” staff numbers in some regions as nurses go on strike, NHS England has warned, as it said appointment cancellations due to industrial action are likely to hit half a million.
A strike by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) will take place from 8pm on Sunday until 11.59pm on Monday evening after a High Court judge ruled on Thursday it would be unlawful for the strike to continue into Tuesday as originally planned.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay secured the court’s interim declaration after bringing legal action against part of the trade union’s proposed walkout in a long-running dispute over pay.
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As the NHS prepares to cope with the bank holiday weekend and the impact of the strike, NHS England is urging the public to use the health service wisely.
It said emergency and urgent care would remain the priority, with people asked to use other services such as pharmacies and 111 where possible. Nurses make up a quarter of NHS staff and are the biggest proportion of the health service workforce.
The RCN has said it will not agree to derogations (areas of care where unions agree to provide staffing during industrial action), meaning nurses in intensive care, A&E and cancer care will be on strike.
The RCN said it expects NHS employers to review services and focus on delivering “life-preserving care” but said it would work with the NHS to deal with “extreme circumstances” on strike days.
NHS England said the health service and RCN “are seeking to agree mitigations on an organisation by organisation basis if there is a critical risk to patient safety”.
But it warned that staffing levels for some areas of the country will be “exceptionally low, lower than on previous strike days”.
In a statement, Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, told the PA news agency: “Health leaders are working hard to finalise their plans ahead of the most dramatic strikes the RCN has staged so far, with no national exemptions in place.
“Although the strike will be a day shorter than originally planned, disruption is still expected and so, we hope that RCN representatives at local levels will allow their members to cross the picket line in the event of emergencies where life is at immediate risk.”
He said health leaders “will wait with bated breath” to understand the collective view of the NHS Staff Council – made up of health unions, employers and Government representatives – which is meeting on Tuesday to discuss the Government’s 5% pay offer.
“With waiting lists and feelings of staff burnout being so high, they are keen for the disruption caused by industrial action to be brought to an end with a funded pay deal that satisfies the majority, and for the Government to significantly increase its support for the NHS with a workforce strategy that will help tackle the 124,000 vacancies across the service,” Mr Taylor added.
The NHS’s deputy chief nurse, Charlotte McArdle, said “there is likely to be significant impact upon local services over the bank holiday weekend”.
She added: “We are now entering the sixth month of industrial action across the NHS and this has a cumulative impact on staff who have gone above and beyond to maintain safe patient services during an incredibly challenging period.
“We acknowledge that every appointment postponed has an impact on the lives of individuals and their families and creates further pressure on services and on an already tired workforce.
“If you need non-urgent care I would encourage people – as always – to use services such as pharmacies and 111 online and if you have a life-threatening emergency, please seek help in the usual way by dialling 999.
“Importantly, if you haven’t been contacted to say otherwise, please still attend your appointments as planned.”
NHS England said the number of rescheduled appointments due to strike action is set to hit half a million next week.
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