Strike doctors snub leader’s plea to spare sick children

A SPLIT has opened up within the hardline doctors’ union over whether this month’s all-out strike south of the Border should affect babies and sick children.

One senior official in the British Medical Association (BMA) wanted emergency paediatric care to be exempt from the walkout – but he was voted down.

Dr Johann Malawana, the chair of the BMA’s Junior Doctors Committee, warned other union members that withdrawing care from sick children would be a ‘difficult line to defend.’ In an email to members of the com- mittee sent on March 21 that was leaked to the Health Service Journal, he said: ‘Having taken a lot of very private soundings and talked to lots of people I am going to suggest that any full withdrawal of labour excludes emergency paediatric services.

‘I hope the committee will support me in this decision. I think from a [communications] perspective and to try and ensure we get the sign up of [doctors] as well as retaining the reasonable ground, it is the right thing to do.’

In a second email he said: ‘The reasoning being that doctors withdrawing care from children would be a difficult line to defend.’

But the committee rejected his plea and agreed that the full withdrawal of care should go ahead as planned, on April 26-27.

The two all-out strikes will be the first time in the history of the NHS that doctors have completely walked out on all patients, even emergency cases. This week NHS Medical Director Sir Bruce Keogh warned they would cause ‘irreparable damage’ to the profession.

The row centres on a new contract for junior doctors which will see them paid less for Saturday shifts. The leaked emails are the first sign of a split within the union, which represents two-thirds of all doctors practising in England. But many within the profession are strongly against the strikes and some have resigned from the BMA in a silent protest.

Last night Health Minister Ben Gummer said the emails were ‘yet more evidence that the BMA should call off this dangerous and damaging strike’.

A BMA spokesman said: ‘In refusing to get back around the table the Government has left junior doctors with no option but to take further action.’