Consultants and specialist doctors participated in a 24-hour industrial action in Northern Ireland, marking the first strike by these two groups of medical professionals in the region. The action began at 07:00 BST on Thursday and concluded at 07:00 on Friday, with no picket line demonstrations organized.
While emergency services maintained full coverage, several health trusts reported service disruptions. The Southern Trust rescheduled 143 outpatient appointments and 11 surgeries. The Northern Trust postponed five planned day procedures, 62 outpatient appointments, and 64 radiology appointments. The Belfast Trust postponed 569 outpatient appointments and 114 day cases. The Western Trust cancelled or postponed 321 appointments including inpatient, outpatient, and day case procedures. The South Eastern Health Trust closed Lagan Valley Hospital’s urgent care centre due to the action. According to the Department of Health, 90% of routine and elective services continued as planned. Patients were advised to attend scheduled appointments unless notified otherwise.
The BMA conducted a ballot over a four-week period after leaders rejected a 3.5% pay uplift recommendation from an independent pay body. Results showed 92% of resident doctors, 79% of consultants, and 90% of SAS doctors voting in favor of strike action. Union representatives cited over 18 years of pay erosion as motivation for the industrial action. Medical professionals have indicated a second 24-hour walkout is scheduled for later in the month.
Health Minister Mike Nesbitt expressed disappointment with the strike action while stating his commitment to implementing the recommended pay award, though he indicated budgetary constraints currently prevent doing so. He noted the 3.5% figure represented the recommendation from an independent pay review body and that exceeding it could create repercussions across the broader public sector. BMA representatives indicated they would meet with assembly health committee leadership to discuss the pay dispute further.
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