19 October 2015 - Junior doctors protest against new contracts

Doctors on why they're protesting against changes to working conditions
Aisha Gani (The Guardian)
Thousands of doctors are expected to take to the streets in central London on Saturday to protest against changes to the working conditions of junior doctors brought in by Jeremy Hunt. Here, medics from across the NHS explain why they will be joining the demonstration.
We’re under the bracket of what is being called ‘junior doctor’ at the moment – although we are normally considered to be a part of the senior team when in hospital. I am a specialist trainee, but I work on the on-call rota, and help to run the hospital at night, so I’m a lead medical doctor in the hospital at night. It will be me dealing with the cardiac arrest and the most sick patients in the hospital, in addition to the intensive care doctors.
I feel the communication between doctors and families would be massively impaired if there simply aren’t enough of us to make time for them and I think that’s something that would really affect the public. I recently had a patient over the weekend who was bleeding very, very rapidly, but there were a large number of doctors who were able to come and help. We had about three minutes to make key decisions and act on them. We managed to stabilise the patient, but if doctors were not able to respond quickly enough or there weren’t the right cohort of people, it’s possible that we wouldn’t have been able to save this gentleman. In a life-and-death situation, you need everyone there and you need everyone at their best.
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The government, the BMA, and the junior doctors - where next?
Hugh Pym (BBC)
The claims and counter-claims over the proposed new contract for junior doctors in England have been well-documented.
The British Medical Association is adamant that it has not received sufficient assurances on protection against excessive hours and maintaining pay levels. The Department of Health stresses there is no plan to cut the paybill or make doctors work longer hours.
Most of the Royal Colleges have urged the doctors' representatives and NHS Employers to get back around the table. But given the stand-off over assurances and preconditions it is hard to see that happening any time soon.
The BMA says it won't agree to enter talks over a contract with elements which the government is trying to impose. Ministers respond by saying that the door is open to discuss the whole package.

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Jeremy Hunt: BMA 'misrepresenting' new doctors contracts
Tim Ross and Sophie Jamieson (The Telegraph)

 
Jeremy Hunt has accused the British Medical Association of misleading junior doctors over the government’s new contracts.

The Health Secretary said the doctors’ union had “misrepresented” his position and stoked “a huge amount of anger” among medics with inaccurate claims that their pay will fall, under the new deal.

His attack on the BMA came as thousands of doctors are expected to protest against the Government's plans to impose a new contract at a rally in London on Saturday.
The march is the second of its kind in the capital as the row continues between the Health Secretary and representatives of the BMA.

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