Ambulance service workers will be taking part in industrial action on Monday 6 February and Friday 10 February 2023.
As has been the case during previous periods of strike action, ambulance workers will continue to prioritise and respond to the most urgent, life threatening calls.
Our hospitals will be preparing by putting extra support into the Emergency Department to ensure prompt ambulance handovers on strike days, and discharging as many patients as possible who are medically fit to leave in advance of the action.
Routine hospital services on strike days will continue, and so anyone who has a hospital appointment or who is booked for a procedure on one of the strike dates mentioned above should still attend as planned. Should there be a need to change your appointment or any arrangements linked to it, such as any hospital transport you may have booked, we will be in touch with you directly.
On both Monday 6th and Friday 10th February, patients should only call 999 if it is a medical or mental health emergency, i.e. when someone is seriously ill or injured and their life is at risk. As there will be fewer ambulances on the roads during the industrial action, patients calling 999 for conditions which are not life-threatening are unlikely to receive an ambulance on strike days.
There are also likely to be fewer 999 and NHS111 call handlers available on the day, so anyone contacting these services should expect longer call response times. Where it is given, patients should take advice from 111 or 999 call handlers on circumstances where it is suitable for them to make their own way to hospital.
Please take extra care at this time and look out for vulnerable family members, friends or neighbours.
Anyone with non-urgent care needs should first seek help from NHS 111 online.
If you are unwell and need assistance, you should also consider alternatives such as:
- Local pharmacies
- Your GP practice
- Story Street walk-in centre, Hull
- Local Urgent Treatment Centres (Bransholme, Beverley, Goole and Bridlington), all of which are open into the evening with the exception of Bransholme which remains open 24hrs/day.
Regardless of any strike action taking place, it is really important that patients who need urgent medical care continue to come forward, especially in emergency and life-threatening cases – when someone is seriously ill or injured, or their life is at risk.
For more information on when to call 999 and when to go to A&E, you can visit the NHS UK website.