ACROSS Devon nurses will be on strike for the second time today, Monday.
Nurses in Torbay, Exeter and Plymouth are among the hospitals and community teams who will be taking part in the second walkout over pay.
The Royal College of Nursing has been calling for a pay rise of five per cent above inflation, although it has indicated it would probably accept a lower figure
It marks the start of a series of walkouts by NHS staff in England this week – the biggest round of industrial action in the history of the health service, according to NHS bosses – in their fight to get an above-inflation pay rise.
The Royal College of Nursing website advises: ‘Royal College of Nursing members employed at Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust will be taking strike action for fair pay on 6 and 7 February for the entire duration of the normal day shift.
‘Strike action will take place at all workplaces covered by this employer. The strike will be across all dayshifts, no matter when these are: eg. 7am to 7pm; 7.30 am to 7.30 pm; 7am to 7.30 pm; 8 am to 8 pm, etc.’
‘What are we trying to achieve?
‘To rectify the years of real-terms pay cuts that are pushing people out of the nursing profession and putting patient safety at risk.
‘The RCN’s pay position is clear. We expect to see a pay award that goes 5% above inflation (the retail prices index).’
Picket lines will be in place at:
At the entrance along Newton Road, Torbay Hospital, Newton Rd, Torquay TQ2 7AA
Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Barrack Road, Exeter EX2 5DW
North Devon District Hospital, Raleigh Park, Barnstaple EX31 4JB
Whipton Hospital, Hospital Lane, Exeter, EX1 3RB (to be confirmed)
The Mid-Devon Advertiser has contacted Devon NHS and Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust for information and will provide this as soon as we receive it.
ADVICE FOR PATIENTS
• The advice remains to call 999 in an emergency.
• The most life-threatening situations - such as cardiac arrest - will be responded to by an ambulance.
• Conditions which are serious but not immediately life-threatening might not be attended straight away in the areas where ambulance staff are on strike
• Other services, such as some cancer treatments or urgent testing, may only be partially staffed
• More routine care is likely to be badly affected, including planned operations such as knee and hip replacements, community nursing services and health visiting
• Anyone with an appointment not already rearranged should attend at their allotted time
• GPs, community pharmacies and dentists will be unaffected