Wednesday marks the start of the longest strike by hospital physicians in England, which officials in the health sector believe would put further strain on services during the busiest time of year.
Junior physicians, or those who are not consultants, will be joining picket lines on Saturday from 0700 GMT to the same time in a significant intensification of their ongoing wage conflict.
Starting on January 3, a further six days of work stoppage are scheduled.
The state-funded National Health Service (NHS), which is under greater strain from seasonal respiratory infections, is experiencing one of its busiest times of the year due to the strike.
Hospital administrators and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak have criticized the strike, calling the protracted walkout their “worst fears realised.”
“We would encourage junior doctors to consider carefully the extremely significant impact striking at such a challenging time will have both on the NHS and for individual patients and to return to talks,” Sunak said on Tuesday.
Following a breakdown in negotiations with the government, the British Medical Association (BMA) declared the strike earlier this month.
According to the union, junior doctors have been offered an additional 3.0% raise, on top of the 8.8% average increase they received earlier this year.
It declined the offer on the grounds that the money would “still amount to pay cuts for many doctors” and would be distributed unevenly among various doctor grades.
The UK government is in charge of England, but the administrations of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have devolved authority for health policy.
Junior doctors in Wales are due to walk out for 72 hours from January 15. Those in Northern Ireland are being balloted for potential strike action.
Their Scottish counterparts have struck a deal with the government in Edinburgh.
The two weeks after Christmas usually see an increase in hospital admissions for the NHS as a result of patients delaying treatment so they may enjoy the holidays with family and friends.
Stephen Powis, national medical director of NHS England, issued a warning, stating that the strike would “put the NHS on the back foot” and cause “huge disruption” as it approached the busiest time of year.
Large waiting lists for surgeries and appointments are already present in the service; these backlogs are attributed to years of underfunding as well as treatment postponements during the COVID-19 pandemic.