Thousands of senior doctors working for the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK have begun a strike across England, causing widespread disruption to patient care, according to the German News Agency.
As reported by British news agency PA Media, consultant doctors and resident dentists in hospitals are set to strike for a period of 48 hours, starting from today until 7 am (06:00 GMT) next Saturday.
Julian Hartley, the executive director at the NHS, told PA Media, “This strike is likely to have the largest impact on patients and services to date.” He added, “The sector cannot operate without consultant doctors.”
This strike comes just two days after junior doctors organized a five-day strike, the longest in the history of the British NHS.
The government had informed consultant doctors that they would receive a 6% pay rise, but the British Medical Association described this as “ridiculous.”
The association stated that under the 2003 contract, consultants start with a basic salary of £88,364 ($114,387) which increases to £119,133 after about 19 years.
