250,000 appointments may be lost this month in doc strikes

MORE than two million appointments could be disrupted by resident doctors' strikes, analysis shows.

- By Martyn Brown

The action over pay is due to begin on Friday for five days then continue in various segments until next year.

Some 250,000 appointments may be impacted this month alone, according to the Policy Exchange think tank.

Resident doctors, previously known as junior doctors, want a 29% pay rise following the huge 22.3% increase that was awarded by Labour just a year ago following a string of strikes.

Last week, coroner's reports revealed the action in 2023-24 was linked to at least five patient deaths.

Some 1.5 million appointments were also axed or rescheduled.