Doctors strike: Lib Dems call for patients to be sent to private hospitals to ease impact

EMBARGO: Immediate release 

The Liberal Democrats are calling for an NHS Strike Resilience Plan, using private hospitals for some elective treatments to ensure no patient gets bumped down a waitlist further.

The plan would ensure that the harmful impacts of the strike are kept to an absolute minimum for patients, who have already suffered numerous disruptions and ballooning waitlists due to strikes in the last few years.

As part of the plan, the Liberal Democrats are also calling on the Government to secure a more comprehensive derogation process with the BMA. This would allow hospitals to ask striking doctors to return to work if patient safety is at risk, not just in the event of an unforeseen emergency or mass casualty event - as is currently the case.

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Hospitals and Primary Care Spokesperson Jess Brown Fuller MP said:

"People across the country waiting for the treatment they desperately need will be disappointed to hear there’s yet more strikes, having already faced so much disruption in the last few years.

"The Government cannot afford to dither and delay, there is too much at stake- and patients deserve to get the treatment they need when they need it.

"That is why the Liberal Democrats are calling for an NHS Strike Resilience Plan, to protect patients from suffering.The Government needs to pull its finger out and ensure that private hospitals are on standby so that anyone set to receive treatment is not forced to go without and waitlists are not left to soar."

ENDS