Hospital boss apologises after doctor strikes

Steve McManus said the rescheduling of appointments could cause some patients "real harm"

A hospital boss has apologised after it was revealed more than 500 appointments and procedures were postponed as a result of a nationwide strike.

In total, 479 outpatient appointments and 33 procedures had to be rescheduled at Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading as a result of the five-day walkout by resident doctors.

Chief executive of Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust Steve McManus apologised, adding that, for some patients, the rescheduling of their appointments had the potential to cause "real harm".

On Wednesday, the British Medical Association (BMA) and Health Secretary Wes Streeting agreed to resume talks.

"My door is open to the BMA leadership to resume the talks we were having last week, before they walked out," the health secretary said.

"After a 28.9% pay rise over the last three years, we simply cannot go further on pay this year, but there are real improvements to resident doctors working lives we can work hand-in-hand to make - from training positions to career progression and beyond."

'Significant inconvenience'

The postponed appointments and procedures accounted for about 6% of the hospital's activity during the five-day walkout, Mr McManus said.

"At the very least there's a significant level of inconvenience, through to the potential for real harm, given the fact that some of those patients, their referral will have been on a cancer pathway," he said.

"We've already started the process of getting patients rebooked, but of course there's a knock on effect... it's not just about keeping our hospital services safe during that period."

He thanked staff who had "tried really hard" to ensure as many appointments were kept as possible.

"It's really good to hear that the BMA are coming back to the table with government, with a hope that we will avoid further disruption and the impact it has," he said.

The BMA said it wanted the strike to be the last and said Streeting could have prevented it with "a credible offer".

"We're glad to hear Mr Streeting is open to new talks. Let's make them count," the spokesperson said.

Sir James Mackey, NHS chief executive, said he was "extremely grateful" to staff who kept the NHS running throughout the action.