UNITED KINGDOM — Hospital doctors in England have initiated a new strike lasting 72 hours to protest against inadequate pay, prompting health officials to warn of significant disruptions to patient services.

This strike is the latest in a series of demonstrations within the state-funded National Health Service (NHS), as nurses and other medical staff have also taken part in picketing to demand better compensation.

Junior doctors, referring to those below the level of consultant, commenced their walk-out at 7:00 am (0600 GMT) on Wednesday, with plans to continue until Saturday.

The Junior Doctors Committee of the British Medical Association (BMA) asserts that doctors have experienced a real-term pay reduction of 26 percent over the past 15 years, as their salaries have failed to keep pace with the soaring inflation.

Their main objective is to have their pay restored to the levels of 2008-2009. However, the government argues that meeting this demand would necessitate an average pay increase of approximately 35 percent this year, which it considers unaffordable. Instead, the government has proposed an additional five percent increase.

The BMA has warned that it will stage further strikes in the coming months if the government remains firm in its offer.

Although it remains open to further negotiations, the association insists that the government’s current proposal is disrespectful and insufficient.

A picket line outside University College Hospital in London witnessed a 27-year-old trainee anaesthetist, Arianna Zembryzcka, expressing her financial struggles, including difficulty paying rent.

She stated that the government’s offer fails to address this year’s inflation, let alone years of eroded wages.

On Tuesday, Stephen Powis, NHS England’s national medical director, cautioned that routine or pre-planned care would likely be significantly affected by the strike.

In a previous walk-out in April, 196,000 hospital appointments and operations had to be rescheduled.

Powis explained that rearranging procedures involving multiple teams can be time-consuming, thereby causing substantial disruptions to patient care. However, priority will be given to emergency, urgent, and critical care.

In light of the strike, hospital administrators have urged both sides to find common ground, as they grapple with substantial treatment backlogs exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the BMA, approximately seven million people were waiting for treatment in April, setting a record, with nearly three million individuals waiting for more than 18 months.

The situation concerning the waiting time for initial appointments and cancer treatment has also deteriorated.

Health Secretary Steve Barclay expressed disappointment regarding the strikes, emphasizing the risks they pose to patients and efforts to reduce waiting lists.

He called on the BMA to cancel the disruptive strikes and show a willingness to compromise significantly, suggesting that confidential negotiations could then resume, as has been done with other unions.

In Scotland, junior doctors rejected the Scottish Government’s “final” pay offer of a 14.5 percent increase over two years, leading BMA Scotland to announce a strike from July 12-15.

It is important to note that health policy is a devolved matter, with the governments in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland responsible for their own healthcare systems, while the UK government in London oversees matters pertaining to England.

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