Doctors in England Launch Five-Day Strike

(MENAFN) Physicians in England commenced a five-day strike on Wednesday over disagreements regarding remuneration and working conditions, as the country's National Health Service (NHS) issued warnings about a spike in flu cases.

In the latest move over salaries, thousands of resident doctors staged another walkout following calls from the British Medical Association (BMA) citing "the continuing failure of the government to make a credible offer on jobs or pay."

The strike follows the rejection of a recently revised proposal put forward by the government, according to a BMA statement issued on Monday.

The Department of Health had proposed measures such as increasing the number of new specialty training positions from 1,000 to 4,000 over the next three years. The plan also included a commitment to introduce emergency legislation in the new year to prioritize UK medical graduates for these positions.

A total of 83% of doctors, who are members of the BMA, turned down the offer and voted to proceed with the scheduled strike action.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting earlier described the demand for a 26% pay increase over the next few years, in addition to last year’s 28.9% rise, as a "totally unrealistic demand."

Last week, the NHS cautioned that hospitals in England are confronting a "worst case scenario" in December due to a "super flu" surge.

Officials reported that an average of 2,660 patients per day were hospitalized with flu in the first week of December—the highest ever recorded for this time of year and a 55% increase compared with the previous week.

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