Industrial action will have a significant impact on our services when senior and junior doctors take coordinated strike action from Monday 2 October, to 7am on Thursday 5 October.

Both senior doctors and junior doctors will provide a ‘Christmas Day’ level of cover, which means emergency services will still be covered.

While emergency care will be covered during the industrial action, we have had to rearrange 1,317 outpatient appointments, and 64 non-urgent surgeries.

We are prioritising patients who need urgent care, including cancer patients and those who have experienced longer waits.

If your appointment or surgery is rescheduled, we will contact you directly. If you do not hear from us, please come in as planned.

Our Chief Executive Matthew Trainer said: “The ongoing strikes are costing us millions of pounds, damaging morale, and leading to longer waits for treatment.

 “Our doctors feel their skills, hard work and dedication aren’t valued.

 “I am particularly worried about our junior doctors. They are our future consultants, medical directors and CEOs. They believe they are not being treated with respect. 

 “We need meaningful negotiations and a settlement. An imposed pay award and repeated strike action isn’t tenable as the NHS heads into winter. We can’t run our hospitals like this.”

While our A&Es will remain open during the strike it’s likely they will be under considerable strain which means if you do not need emergency care you will face very long waits.

Your local pharmacist or GP can help treat a wide range of conditions and means you can get seen more quickly; and NHS 111 can advise you if you’re not sure where to get the best care. Find out more on our ‘get the right care for you’ page.

Junior doctors are a large part of our medical team and range from doctors who have recently finished medical school, to those with several years of experience. They help our hospitals run smoothly by undertaking a range of roles including ordering tests or x-rays, referring patients to other medical teams, discharging patients and reviewing sick or deteriorating patients.

Senior doctors, or consultants, have completed full medical training in a specialised area of medicine and are listed on the General Medical Council’s specialist register. They have clinical and administrative responsibilities in managing junior doctors.

After graduating from medical school, it takes a doctor between six and eight years to become a consultant.

We've had to rearrange 11,531 outpatient appointments and 958 non-urgent surgeries so far due to strikes.The impact of the industrial action to the end of August, including lost income, has cost our Trust £5.9m.