Doctors' five-day strike at Bedfordshire hospitals starts on Wednesday
The strike by resident doctors, formerly junior doctors, is due to start at 7am tomorrow (Wednesday).
But Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust – which runs both Bedford Hospital and Luton & Dunstable Hospital – has told anyone who has a hospital appointment between December 17 and 22 should attend as planned, unless they’ve been contacted to reschedule.
In a statement on its website, the trust said: “Our staff are working hard to ensure we can continue to provide both emergency care for the most seriously ill and injured patients, as well as maternity services and care on the wards for our patients.
“Regardless of any strike action taking place, it is really important that patients who need urgent medical care continue to come forward as normal, especially in emergency and life-threatening cases – when someone is seriously ill or injured, or their life is at risk.”
It added: “During this time we need patients to help us by using our services wisely and taking simple steps to help ensure care is available to patients who need it most. This includes using 111 online as the first port of call for health needs and continuing to only attend our Emergency Department if it is a life-threatening emergency.”