Ajit Karn
London: Poh Wang intends to go on strike with tens of thousands of other British junior physicians next week, claiming he is overworked, underpaid, and burdened with a student loan he cannot pay off due to a government he claims does not care.
The 28-year-old claims that he and his coworkers have been driven to the precipice after below-inflation pay increases collided with the escalating cost of living, leaving him wondering how he will ever pay off his more than £101,000 in student debt.
In addition, he remains enraged at his treatment during the pandemic, when he felt helpless to contend with the influx of patients presenting with COVID-19 symptoms, claiming that public displays of support did not pay the expenses.
On March 13, he will join junior physicians across England who will go on strike for three days in protest of pay and fatigue, which threatens to drive staff away from the health service as it deals with record-high patient waiting lists.
Poh Wang, a council member of the British Medical Association (BMA) that represents physicians and medical students, stated, “We have reached a critical point where we have had enough.”
The extent to which we have been exploited, mistreated, and devalued is palpable.
Poh Wang, the son of Chinese immigrants who operated a takeout restaurant in Chester, northern England, became a physician because he relished assisting others. He attended medical school for six years and has worked for five, including two years of psychiatry specialty training.
Apprentice doctors are qualified physicians, frequently with several years of experience, who work under the supervision of senior doctors and make up a significant portion of the medical community of the country.
In addition to his basic 40 hours per week, he works additional hours that can total up to approximately 48 hours per week. He leases a room in a shared apartment in west London, which costs approximately 1,000 pounds per month.
‘ABOVE AND BEYOND’
In the early stages of the pandemic, Dr. Poh Wang worked as an emergency medicine physician in south London, where he and his colleagues were forced to make challenging decisions and console patients who could not be admitted to intensive care units due to capacity constraints.
He stated, “We went above and beyond to do everything possible.”
As food inflation in Britain reaches 17%, he and his employees are becoming increasingly resentful of the past few years, he stated.
Poh Wang stated, in reference to Britain’s Clap for Our Carers campaign for healthcare employees during the height of the pandemic, “We detest the sound of applauding, acclaim, because it’s hollow.”
If you respect what we’ve been through and the sacrifices we’ve made, then compensate us appropriately.
Using the Retail Price Index (RPI) as a measure of inflation, the BMA claims that trainee physicians’ take-home pay has decreased by more than a quarter over the past 15 years.
It states that a large majority of its members voted to strike.
The walkouts by junior physicians will increase the strain on the government-funded National Health Service (NHS), which is currently experiencing bouts of strike action by nurses, ambulance workers, and other staff.
Daniel Zahedi, 27 years old, is another resident physician who intends to go on strike on Monday. His facility in Cambridge, eastern England, is chronically understaffed and ailing, according to him.
Daniel Zahedi stated, “We are frequently in short supply.”
As a first-year practitioner with a medical degree, Daniel Zahedi receives a base salary of approximately £29,000 per year for a minimum of 40 hours per week. He reported working approximately 60 hours this week, which was slightly above average but “not unusual.” His total student loan debt is approximately 100,000 pounds.
“As a student, you must also pay to be a member of your Royal College, to take examinations, and even to advance in your career,” he explained.
Daniel Zahedi stated that, despite his fondness for the profession, he cannot see himself remaining in it for the foreseeable future.
Also read: The Realme 10 Pro Coca-Cola Edition has arrived, and it is whimsical
“People are leaving left, right, and centre – where pay is being eroded year after year, conditions are deteriorating, and patient care is being compromised,” he said.
They feel undervalued, and individuals are departing.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak identified the reduction of hospital wait periods as one of his government’s five priorities in January.
The government has stated that public sector pay restraint is required to bring double-digit inflation under control, citing demonstrations in multiple sectors, including train conductors and teachers.
