
Royal Berkshire NHS Trust boss apologies after doctor strikes
"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 BBC has approached the BMA and NHS England for comment, but the union previously said it had no choice but to call the strike, accusing the government of refusing to negotiate on pay.
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