Making NHS seven-day service could threaten patients’ safety, say doctors

Plans are unfunded, undefined, unrealistic and would see routine operations cancelled on weekdays, says BMA

Doctors have warned that plans to transform the NHS into a seven-day service are a waste of vital resources that could threaten the quality of care during the week and prove a danger to patient safety.

In a strongly worded attack, the British Medical Association accuses NHS England of pushing ahead with an “unfunded, undefined” strategy that is “wholly unrealistic” given the health service’s chronic staffing and financial problems.

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