Newcastle Hospitals has warned of a major impact on services ahead of the British Medical Association’s junior doctors’ strike and is asking the public to only attend the Emergency Department in a life-threatening emergency.
Many junior doctors are expected to join the strike which starts at 7am on Friday (11 August) until 7am on Tuesday 15 August.
However, this wave of industrial action has been more challenging to plan for due to summer annual leave, meaning staffing levels in wards and departments will be much lower than usual.
Patients are likely to experience significantly longer waits and some planned treatments have been rescheduled.
On the days and nights of the strike staff will work to ensure and maintain patient safety, and we will prioritise emergency treatment.
We are asking people with minor injuries or illness not to attend the hospital but to use www.111.nhs.uk, urgent treatment centres, their GP or to speak to a pharmacist.
The trust’s chief operating officer Martin Wilson said: “Our operational teams have been working hard to put plans in place to safely staff our hospitals and community services during this four-day junior doctors’ strike.
“This included identifying which patients can safely go home and postponing much of our planned work to try and reduce bed occupancy as we head into this weekend so we can prioritise our efforts on urgent and emergency care and looking after patients on our wards.
“Please be reassured that we are doing everything we can to ensure patients receive safe care – we are as prepared as possible but these four-days are going to be exceptionally challenging.
“Our teams will always be here to help people that urgently need treatment and care. However, with high demand for services and reduced staffing levels we are expecting services to be disrupted and the public are likely to see lengthy delays, particularly in the Emergency Department.”
If you do need medical care and it’s not life threatening, contact NHS 111 online which is available 24 hours a day, you nearest pharmacy or local GP (on weekdays).
Our urgent treatment centres are also open seven days a week and further information can be found on our website.
- Molineux UTC is open from 8am until 8pm, 7 days a week
- Ponteland Road UTC will remain open from 8am until 10pm, 7 days a week.
Parents, carers and young people can also use the Healthier Together app or website which provides NHS healthcare advice and top tips on a range of child related illnesses along with information on local services.
Anyone needing urgent mental health support should continue to seek it via their local Crisis Team. People can put their postcode in here to find their local crisis line here.
For children’s health advice you can download The Little Orange Book which covers a wide range of illnesses in children from common minor ailments including teething, constipation, and colds, through to more serious conditions.
Emergency care
If you require emergency care, you should call 999, or go to your nearest Emergency Department. You should ONLY call 999 or go to an Emergency Department if you or someone else has a life-threatening emergency, such as:
- signs of a heart attack
chest pain, pressure, heaviness, tightness or squeezing across the chest - signs of a stroke
face dropping on one side, cannot hold both arms up, difficulty speaking - sudden confusion (delirium)
cannot be sure of own name or age - suicide attempt
by taking something or self-harming - severe difficulty breathing
not being able to get words out, choking or gasping - choking
on liquids or solids right now - heavy bleeding
spraying, pouring or enough to make a puddle - severe injuries
after a serious accident or assault - seizure (fit)
shaking or jerking because of a fit, or unconscious (cannot be woken up) - sudden, rapid swelling
of the lips, mouth, throat or tongue
