A&E Stays Open as Doctors' Strike Suspended Following New Pay Offer

Cheltenham General Hospital's A&E will remain open after the British Medical Association suspended a planned four-day doctors' strike following a new government pay offer. Patients should attend appointments unless contacted.

A&E Department Remains Open After Strike Suspension

The planned closure of the Accident & Emergency (A&E) department at Cheltenham General Hospital will not proceed after a doctors' strike was called off.

The hospital's A&E was scheduled to close on Sunday at 20:00 BST and reopen on Monday as a minor injury and illness unit until Friday. However, on Saturday, the British Medical Association (BMA) announced the suspension of the four-day strike by resident doctors following a new pay offer from the government.

Impact on Appointments and Services

The Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust stated that it was too late to reinstate appointments cancelled for Monday but is actively working to reorganise those planned from Tuesday through Thursday.

In an official statement, the NHS trust said:

"While this late change means some disruption to services is unavoidable, we are working quickly to restore services wherever possible."

Patients are advised to attend their appointments as scheduled unless they are contacted directly by the hospital.

BMA Response and Next Steps

Dr Jack Fletcher, chair of the BMA's resident doctor committee, commented on the situation:

"All we have asked for is a fair offer that secures enough jobs to tackle the madness of doctor unemployment and take steps to address the erosion of our pay.

Tens of thousands of frontline doctors will now vote in a referendum on whether this offer is sufficient."

"Doctors will now have their say. If they say no to this offer we will have to continue our plans for further escalated action across next month."

Government Statement

Health Secretary James Murray described the new offer as an opportunity to resolve the ongoing disputes:

"The country simply cannot afford to increase the pay offer for this year. I am pleased that the BMA have recognised this, which has allowed us to make progress in other areas, such as training places and working conditions."

"This is a chance to draw a line under the damaging disputes of recent years."

Strike Details and Background

The strike had been planned to begin at 07:00 on Monday and continue until 06:59 on Friday. It would have marked the 16th strike in the protracted dispute over doctors' pay.