‘Time to put patients first’-Strikes hit King George’s and Queen’s hospital.
Conservative Parliamentary Prospective Candidate for Dagenham and Rainham Sam Holland today shares his views on the current junior doctors strike impacting local hospitals.
Like so many people across Dagenham and Rainham, Queen’s Hospital and the local NHS are personal to me. Members of my own family work on the front-line in its Maternity Department. Other relatives of mine have received cancer treatment and palliative care there. Indeed, I have been a patient at the hospital numerous times myself. I know from first-hand experience the amazing work and care the front-life staff deliver day-in, day-out.
I am therefore shocked that the British Medical Association (BMA) union-led Junior Doctors strike is putting pay demands before patients by affecting operations at both King George’s and Queen’s between Wednesday 3rd January through to Tuesday 9th. The longest such strike in NHS history. Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS Trust who oversee both hospitals say this will have a big impact on services. 25% of operations during that time will be cancelled.
The unionised Doctors are demanding a staggering 35% pay increase. Even former Labour Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls said last week this is simply unaffordable.
As the NHS is still managing the legacy impact of the pandemic on waiting lists, this is a deliberate attempt at the height of winter to hold the system and patients to ransom. It risks local people’s health.
Its time this strike was called off for the sake of our local NHS and patients.
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This Tory really takes the biscuit. His party have presided over a 14 year run down of the NHS, from GP services to hospitals such as Queens. Rather than attacking doctors who have become overstretched and demoralised he should be speaking to his Tory mates in Government telling them to negotiate now. If he listened to what the doctors are saying he might perhaps understand that they aren’t asking for a full pay settlement now, they’re looking for a commitment to the NHS and a path to restoring their pay level.
By the way, this guy has some cheek, I wonder what those people who voted for him in Bicester Oxfordshire, believing his promises that he would serve them when elected, think of him now as he has turned his back on them and their issues.