Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) have announced new strike dates after rejecting the latest government pay deal.
The RCN has called for negotiations with the government to resume immediately over pay and, as they remain in a dispute, members of the RCN are due to take part in industrial action from 8pm on Sunday 30 April until Midnight on Monday 1 May, which includes bank holiday Monday.
The RCN has announced that there will be no wide-ranging derogations in place, resulting in much wider impact on local trust services and departments (previously, emergency care has been excluded).
We are expecting RCN members employed by the following local organisations to participate in this latest industrial action:
- Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust
- University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust
- Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust
- Solent NHS Trust
- South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust.
We continue to work with partners across the health and care system in Hampshire and Isle of Wight, and we are urging residents to use health services appropriately to ensure they receive the right care for their needs in as timely a way as possible. Patient safety remains our absolute priority.
Patients will continue to be prioritised according to clinical need, and anyone who has an appointment during the period of industrial action should continue to attend as planned, unless they are contacted to reschedule.
Please help us keep Emergency Departments free for those who need them most. If you have an urgent medical problem and you are not sure what to do, visit 111 online at 111.nhs.uk.
Dr Lara Alloway, Joint Chief Medical Officer for the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board said:
“We are working closely with our partners across the county to plan, prepare and mitigate the potential impact on patients, communities and staff to ensure that services continue to run as smoothly as possible.
“Patient care remains our top priority and we are working hard to ensure that we continue to deliver the best level of care possible. If you have an appointment during the industrial action you should continue to attend as planned unless you are contacted to reschedule.
“No one should put off seeking urgent care in an emergency during this period, however we are urging people to only attend our emergency departments if it is an emergency situation. Details of other services including urgent treatment centres that are available to you are on the ICB website.”