The Medical Women’s Federation (MWF) supports the junior doctors’ concerns. Sir Bruce Keogh commented to the HSJ (2016) that Doctors in training “currently feel like itinerant workers: they move from institution to institution rapidly, sometimes only spending four months in an individual placement”. This leads to a lack of continuity in support, mentorship and effective educational training.
Many doctors may not receive their rota until a few days before they start their placements. This gives limited time to plan alternative arrangements for child care, schooling and other family commitments. This is unacceptable and is not compatible with caring roles outside medicine. Moreover the new contract, with insistence that weekend working becomes routine rather than on a rota basis for emergency cover as it is at present, will further exacerbate the problems that doctors with families already face in medicine. The MWF wish to ensure that the environment for service delivery is safe for Junior Doctors to deliver excellent patient care.
