NHS strikes show absolute desperation - Sheffield consultant
BBC By Victoria Scheer & Elliott Green
BBC News
Senior medics say this week's joint strike action by consultants and junior doctors reflects the "absolute desperation" of NHS staff.
Sheffield breast cancer expert Dr Caroline Wilson warned that she feared the NHS could disappear by 2028 if nothing was done.
Consultants in England who walked out on Tuesday will be joined on Wednesday by junior doctors for the first time.
Ministers had previously said the co-ordination of strikes was "callous".
Dr Caroline Wilson, an oncologist at Weston Park Cancer Centre in Sheffield, said the strikes were "not just about pay".
Speaking to BBC Radio Sheffield from the picket line at the city's Royal Hallamshire Hospital, the consultant said: "What it shows is the absolute desperation that we've all got to.
"We are not here just about pay, we are here to save the NHS.
"If something does not change we will not have an NHS in five years."
Last month, the British Medical Association (BMA) announced consultants would strike on 19 and 20 September, with junior doctors joining on the second day.
