Hospital services in the UK come to a standstill as thousands of senior doctors strike again
Hospital care across England is coming to a standstill as senior doctors launch another 48-hour strike amid an ongoing dispute over pay
LONDON (AP) — Hospital care across England is expected to come to a standstill on Thursday as senior doctors launch another 48-hour strike amid an ongoing pay dispute between medics and the British government.
Thousands of hospital doctors say they will only provide emergency care, and the National Health Service warned patients to expect major disruption during the two-day strike.
Thursday's action is the latest in a series of strikes staged by doctors, nurses and other clinical staff in recent months and part of a wave of disruptive industrial action by public sector workers to demand better pay amid the U.K.'s cost-of-living crisis.
Julian Hartley, chief executive of NHS Providers, said the latest walkouts are a “massive headache” for the public health service because they are timed just before the late August three-day public holiday weekend, when demand at hospital emergency departments is typically higher. That means many services will in effect be out of action for five days.
