Junior doctors go on strike in row with the state over pay for working on Saturdays

The banner headline in a tabloid newspaper last week declared: “Don’t get sick on Tuesday!” Why? At 8 am last Tuesday, for the first time ever, thousands of junior doctors went on strike, refusing to attend patients at accident and emergency departments, in maternity wards and under intensive care.

High-level consultants and middle-grade doctors and nurses stepped up to replace them, but some 13,000 operations were postponed, 100,000 appointments cancelled and holidays and study leave delayed.

Most health care in Britain is provided free at the point of delivery under the National Health Service. Publicly funded by taxation, it is the largest, and at 68 years, the oldest health care system in the world. Recently, medical professionals have expressed alarm at the increasing burdens on the Service caused largely by people living longer.

Last week’s scheduled two-day strike followed the breakdown of negotiations between doctors and the government over working hours and especially pay for working on Saturdays. The government plan cut pay for Saturdays and unsocial hours but increased basic salaries. Talks broke down last January and the government declared that it would impose a new contract in the summer.

The average salary for medical practitioners is around £69,000 (Sh10.1 million) per year but trainee doctors start at £22,636 (Sh3.3 million), rising after four years to £30,000 (Sh4.4 million). In contrast, secondary school teachers average £32,000 (Sh4.7 million), train drivers £47,000 (Sh6.9 million) and farmers £23,000 (Sh3.3 million).

SUPPORTED DOCTORS' ACTION

The strike was scheduled between 8 am and 5 pm on Tuesday and Wednesday and opinion polls showed that some 58 per cent of people supported the doctors’ action while 26 per cent opposed it. However, pollsters reported an increasing number of people blaming both sides.

* * *

About one in 500 people in the UK suffers from the degenerative neurological disease, Parkinson’s, which makes its presence evident through tremors, slowness of movement and rigidity.

A charity, Parkinson’s UK, says at least a third of these are also affected emotionally because they feel their symptoms, such as shaky hands or head, are socially unacceptable.

A survey showed that one in three with the condition had delayed telling friends and family about their diagnosis for fear of being stigmatised. Younger people are hardest hit, to the extent that they felt “like their world had ended” and “they didn’t know who to turn to.”

Steve Ford, chief executive of Parkinson’s UK, said victims must be made aware of the help available to them. “We know that the right support, whether through family, friends or Parkinson’s UK, is vital for those with the condition to help them come to terms with their diagnosis and know that they are not alone.”

* * *

Traffic managers in Newcastle upon Tyne set up a city centre camera and caught some 20,000 motorists driving illegally in a bus lane. The City Council estimated that the fines – £30 (Sh4,400) per offence – would bring in some £400,000 (Sh59 million) after deduction of recovery costs. The money would be invested in the city’s transport systems.

Drivers protested that at one point the road surface was under repair and there was no option but to use the bus lane.

Mrs Ann Elliot was caught out six times while taking her husband to hospitals. She said, “This is outrageous. It is a disgusting, money-making racket.” She said she would now ask her doctor to book an ambulance to take her husband to hospital for treatment.

* * *

An old lady who lives near a busy road has been keeping her eyes open for traffic offenders.

So far, she has spotted a dog sitting between the arms of a car driver with its paws on the steering wheel, a truck driver with a mug of tea in his hand and a sandwich box on the dashboard, and best of all, the driver of a heavy goods vehicle steering round a corner with his elbows while peeling an orange.

* * *
More dippy burglars: Jason Taylor, 27, was in the act of burgling a house when the owner appeared. They wrestled and the burglar fled, but left behind one of his gloves. Science then did its bit – glove tested for DNA, Taylor traced, arrested, charged, found guilty, sent down for 14 months. Karl Hogg, also 27, stole £800 from a snooker club, climbed onto the roof, fell and broke his skull, an arm and a leg. The judge gave him 18 months but expressing hopes that the fall had knocked some sense into him, suspended the sentence.

* * *

And more Smart Alec notices: In an optician’s window: If you don’t see what you’re looking for, you’ve come to the right place. Outside a funeral home: Drive carefully. We’ll wait. On the back of a garbage truck: Caution! This truck is full of political promises.

[email protected]