Consultants at the Royal Free London will take part in national industrial action for 48-hours from 7am on Thursday 20 July to 7am on Saturday 22 July.

This is after members of the British Medical Association and the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association voted in favour of strike action. It will be the first period of industrial action by consultants.

The strike action will impact all our hospitals – Barnet Hospital, Chase Farm Hospital, and the Royal Free Hospital. Please be assured we are working hard to ensure we minimise disruption to services.

We expect our emergency departments and urgent treatment centres to be extremely busy. Emergency care will be prioritised and patients seeking urgent treatment will be seen.

If you or anyone you know does not have an urgent or life-threatening condition, please use other non-hospital services for advice and treatment during this time, such as:

  • NHS 111: www.111.nhs.uk or telephone 111
  • GP practices (they will continue to be open during the strike)
  • walk-in centres
  • pharmacies

Patients attending our emergency departments may be redirected if the clinical team there thinks it is not the best service for them. We may have to rearrange some planned procedures and outpatient appointments, but patients will be contacted directly if their care is affected.