Hospital non-emergency care cancelled ahead of pathology strike next week

Thousands of patients face having their procedures cancelled as a major strike forces an NHS trust to stop almost all non-emergency care, The Independent can reveal.

- REBECCA THOMAS

Staff working for Synnovis, a pathology provider to NHS hospital and GP services in south London, are set to stage a strike over pay disputes next week.

In an email to all of its staff this week that was seen by The Independent, King’s College Hospital Foundation Trust warned they will have to cancel the vast majority of non-emergency procedures.

The email said: “With no resolution to the dispute in sight, we need to work the basis that the strikes will go ahead ... we have now decided to cancel the vast majority of non-urgent outpatient and elective activity.” It added that even with the cancelled care, pathology services will be under “significant pressure” and asked staff to only request essential blood tests.

The Synnovis staff who are striking also provide services to Guy’s and St Thomas’ Foundation Trust and GP services across six boroughs. Hundreds of staff working for the private provider, who voted in March for strike action, have said they face threats of redundancy and unsafe staffing levels from Synnovis.