A&E switches to minor injury unit during strike

Resident doctors at Cheltenham Hospital will be taking industrial action from Friday morning

An accident and emergency department will temporarily become a minor injury and illness unit while resident doctors go on strike.

Cheltenham General Hospital's emergency department will switch to a minor injury unit from 20:00 GMT on Thursday, ahead of the five-day walkout of resident doctors which begins at 07:00 GMT on Friday.

The minor injury unit will be closed overnight and emergency care services will be centralised at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital during the strike.

Patients with planned operations, outpatient clinic appointments or procedures have been asked to attend the hospital as normal unless they hear otherwise.

NHS Gloucestershire said, as "the highest priority will be to care for those in the most immediate and urgent need and safeguard patient care", some appointments will need to be rearranged.

The Emergency Department service at Cheltenham General Hospital will resume at 08:00 GMT on Wednesday.

There will be no disruption to patient visiting arrangements during the industrial action but relatives and carers have been asked to work with staff to get their loved ones home from hospital as quickly and as safely as possible, with additional support from community services or adult social care teams, if possible.

Dr Ananthakrishnan Raghuram (Raghu), chief medical officer at NHS Gloucestershire, said: "The five-day strike is likely to pose significant challenges to the local NHS, particularly hospital services, and we are sorry that patients might experience some disruption to services.

'Extremely grateful'

"Gloucestershire health and care partners are working closely together to ensure those in greatest need continue to have access to high quality care and support," Dr Raghu added.

"We are extremely grateful to the staff who will be working during this period to keep essential services running for patients.

"It's also vital that we all work together to keep the emergency department in Gloucester clear for life threatening conditions and serious injuries."