This is about life or death for the NHS

CONSULTANT ON STRIKE BY JUNIOR AND SENIOR DOCS

- HELENA VESTY

FOR the first time in NHS history, hospital consultants and junior doctors are walking out on the same day this week - expected to bring some parts of the health service to a standstill.

Across the north west, hospital consultants were striking from 7am today to 7am on Thursday.

Junior doctors will join the consultants on strike from 7am tomorrow to 7am on Saturday, bringing almost all routine care to a grinding halt for 24 hours of joint industrial action, the NHS has warned.

Tomorrow from 7am, both junior doctors and consultants will deliver 'Christmas day levels of staffing' only.

That means only emergency care will be provided, with very limited elective activity - including planned operations like joint replacements, issues causing serious blood loss reserved for those in most urgent need will take place on days of industrial action.

The junior doctor title applies to all grades in the hospital below a consultant. They have been covered by consultants in previous strike action.

But in contrast to strike action among other staff groups, no other clinicians can provide cover for consultants, so any planned care delivered by junior doctors or other healthcare professionals, that requires even remote consultant supervision will need to be rescheduled.

This means a significant amount of planned care will be affected, and many services will have avoided scheduling planned appointments altogether.