ANGRY at being snubbed by NHS Employers, over 3,000 junior doctors and medical students held an impromptu rally outside Westminster Central Halls in London on Monday evening.
They had been invited to a meeting there to discuss the contract the government intends to impose upon junior doctors. The meeting was scheduled for 7pm on Monday evening but at 2pm NHS Employers cancelled.
Chanting ‘Save the NHS, Save the NHS!’ and ‘No ifs, no buts, No junior doctor cuts!’ and carrying placards reading ‘Save Our Contracts So We Can Save Lives’, ‘Protect Our Contracts, Protect the NHS’ ‘Not Safe, Not Fair’, the lively crowd marched from their rally to Downing Street, then the Department of Health across Whitehall and then on to gather in Parliament Square.
News Line spoke to some of the participants. Dr Ros Kings, from London, said: ‘The contract is not fair and not safe for patients. Our objection to the imposition of a contract is that it is not safe or fair for both doctors and patients. It is very disappointing that NHS Employers cancelled their meeting with us at short notice. It doesn’t give us the chance to have a voice.’
A junior doctor from the Royal London Hospital, Dr Fiona Hansell, said: ‘We’re here because we firmly believe if we don’t stand up for patients now, their healthcare and their safety will be put at risk. Essentially, if the government does force doctors to work longer hours, then staff will be tired and demoralised and possibly make mistakes.
”They (the government) also risk losing part of the workforce as doctors vote with their feet. We cannot allow this to happen. We value the NHS as an institution and we will not allow the government to systematically dismantle it, starting with junior doctors.’
Medical student Matt Baker from Hammersmith, added: ‘I think all the changes are going to end up endangering patients. Junior doctors are going to end up more tired and more overworked than they already are. The government are trying to drive the NHS into the ground so essentially they can privatise. With the whole Private Finance Initiative (PFI) thing, the NHS keeps paying for past debts from previous governments as well. We have to fight for the NHS tooth and nail.’
Dr Mariana Pinto Da Costa told News Line: ‘I am a trainee in psychiatry in Portugal and doing training rotation of one month in London because the NHS is well known internationally for its care for patients. I support this protest of my colleagues in the UK because I’m afraid these cuts will decrease the quality of care provided and affect the standards in the UK. In Portugal, we have done strikes. It can be the way to advocate for the best interests of the NHS and patients in the UK as well.’
Another medical student, Chris Brewer from west London, said: ‘I came along to oppose the enforcement of contracts which are cutting pay by 30 per cent and extending working hours into dangerous levels. Hopefully, this can be resolved through negotiations before industrial action has to be taken.’
Junior doctor Mehira said: ‘It’s an unsafe contract for doctors and patients. I’m here to support my fellow doctors, support the BMA and stand up for patients. We’ve been pushed into a corner by the government and the ballot for industrial action is the last resort to defend patients.’
Dr Karen Sayal from Oxford added: ‘As a collective body of junior doctors, our priority is to maintain patient welfare. We are here demonstrating to protect the welfare of our patients.’
Dr Janis Burns from Northwick Park said: ‘I don’t like health secretary Jeremy Hunt and his attitude to the medical profession as a whole, including nurses. I came for the meeting with NHS employers but unfortunately they cancelled at the last minute. It’s upsetting, it’s unfair and it makes me angry.’
Dr Dermot McGuckin, who works in north London, said: ‘Initially, I came here for the meeting with NHS Employers which was cancelled in the afternoon.
‘I wanted to voice my concerns and get some answers. My concerns are imposing a contract that we feel will lead to less safe working practices. It will force a number of doctors to leave the NHS and get employment elsewhere so they can repay debt and support families. The impact that will have on patients as a whole and patient safety is worrying. I’m slightly more hopeful now Jeremy Hunt has said he will meet with the chair of the BMA Junior Doctors Committee. But up til now, he has threatened to impose a contract.
‘The turnout tonight reveals how much that has upset us. I don’t think the decision to ballot for industrial action sits comfortably with any of us but we feel we’ve been forced into this situation as the only way to get the government to listen to our concerns.’
A lecturer at Regent Street University London, Ibrahim Sirkeci said: ‘I’m here to support doctors.
‘The contract change is unacceptable. It’s unfair and should be scrapped. Junior doctors are working long hours anyway. That should be rewarded not punished. If industrial action is what’s needed, so be it.
‘The government are continuing with privatisation, that’s what the ultimate goal is. The NHS shouldn’t be privatised. It is not something you should make a profit from. All the unions should take action alongside the junior doctors, that’s the reasonable thing.’
Ben Fricker-Nuller, a medical student at St George’s University, said: ‘We’re here to do what’s best for our patients and because it’s not fair for junior doctors to receive a 30 per cent pay cut. I believe that we’ve been pushed to the very limit by this government. We should strike for the good of society at large. Our aim is to reverse these contract changes and I personally want to elect a government that can reorganise the economy along more socialist and moral grounds.