NHS administrators have ordered hospitals to free up beds in preparation for “severe disruption” caused by ambulance crew strikes in England.
They stated that patients will need to be discharged as safely as possible before a “really difficult” period.
In a salary dispute, ambulance personnel will strike on December 21 and 28.
Business Secretary Grant Shapps stated that independent pay review bodies determine wage increases for ambulance workers and nurses.
The coordinated strike by the three largest ambulance unions in England and Wales, Unison, GMB, and Unite, will only affect non-life-threatening calls.
On December 21, Unison, Unite, and GMB will participate in a strike. GMB union members will again go on strike on December 28.
The walkouts will encompass paramedics, control room personnel, and support employees.
In a letter to hospital administrators, NHS leaders in England have requested that patients who have completed emergency care be relocated out of emergency departments.
Sir David Sloman, NHS England’s chief operating officer, wrote in a letter co-signed by the national medical director for England Professor Sir Stephen Powis, and chief nursing officer for England Dame Ruth May that this may necessitate the creation of “observation areas” and additional beds elsewhere in the hospital.
The objective is to free up beds to facilitate the movement of patients through A&E and allow paramedics to return to the road more rapidly.
Some outpatient appointments should also be reduced to redeploy senior medical personnel to emergency departments. However, NHS leaders state that “every effort” should be made to maintain urgent cancer diagnoses or cancer treatment, with postponement as a last resort.
They stated that measures should be taken to ensure that patients arriving at hospitals in ambulances are transferred to A&E within 15 minutes.
According to recent NHS data, ambulance transfer times in England have reached a new high. One in six patients waited more than an hour to be transferred to A&E teams during the past week.
Dr. Adrian Boyle, president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, stated that while he supported the letter’s proposal, it would be difficult to implement.
“We do not intentionally delay ambulances,” he told Radio 4’s Today. “It is quite difficult. We always want ambulances to return to the front line as quickly as possible, and during the past three years, we have struggled to achieve this.
When asked what the remedy was, he stated that it was not merely the provision of social care to permit the discharge of elderly patients from the hospital.
“We manage our hospitals quite efficiently in comparison to our European counterparts,” he said, adding, “It’s not just about social care; it’s also about ensuring that our hospitals are large enough to accommodate.”
The walkout by ambulance personnel on December 21 follows a strike by nurses the previous day.
Dr. Boyle stated, “It’s something that makes everyone in this industry anxious.”
Saffron Cordery, interim chief executive of NHS Providers, stated that minimizing handover delays would be “very challenging to accomplish” due to variables including staff absenteeism and increased flu admissions.
Ms. Cordery stated, “We understand why ambulance workers voted for industrial action, but the government and unions must communicate immediately to find a solution to avert this and future strikes.”
The letter sent to NHS trusts and Integrated Care Boards stated that by the 19th of December, managers should have created and coordinated preparations for how to handle strike days.
The staff has been promised an average raise of 4.75 percent, with a guaranteed minimum of £1,400, but the unions have demanded increases that exceed inflation.
Mr. Shapps stated on Radio 4’s Today, “Nurses and ambulance personnel would receive a wage increase based on an impartial recommendation, which I believe is the correct way to achieve things.”
NHS leaders are extremely anxious about the potential consequences of the planned ambulance strikes on December 21 and a smaller-scale walkout a week later.
The message to hospitals demanding swift preparations, including the evacuation of as many medically fit patients as possible, is evidence of this, along with references to a “very difficult moment” and “severe disruption.”
Sir Jim Mackey, a senior NHS England executive, stated that ambulance teams’ actions posed an entirely different level of risk than nurses’ strikes. As a result of Tuesday’s second nursing strike, hundreds of further appointments and operations will be canceled.
The letter from health executives indicates that it may be necessary to reschedule additional appointments on Wednesday when ambulance workers go on strike so that senior physicians can be redeployed to emergency departments. There is little indication that governments and unions are eager to begin salary negotiations.
Following a Monday emergency Cobra meeting, the prime minister’s official spokesman stated that the number of available ambulances to respond to calls would be “seriously” decreased.
Downing Street has indicated that armed forces could be deployed to hospital trusts ahead of the strikes.
Additionally, the Police Federation has suggested that police personnel may be required to drive ambulances.
Oliver Dowden, minister of the Cabinet Office, “The entire government effort is, of course, to minimize these repercussions.” But if this specific ambulance strike goes forward, there will be severe impacts and disruptions.
“You cannot declare a strike in this area and believe it will have no effect. And it will have repercussions.”
He urged union officials to end strikes to “give families and the military a rest.
In a dispute over wages, nurses went on strike in portions of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland on Thursday.
At least 19,000 patients in England and Northern Ireland had their surgeries and appointments postponed due to a strike, according to data published by NHS trusts.
Ministers had anticipated that some 70,000 appointments, procedures, and surgeries would be canceled.
On 20 December, Royal College of Nursing members is anticipated to stage a second walkout.
