Doctors could sue over hours

Doctors are under intense pressure

Junior doctors may be able to start suing hospitals as three out of four fail to meet targets on long hours, the BMA has warned.

On Friday limits on the hours worked as well as guaranteed breaks become part of junior doctors' contractual rights.

Hospital trusts that do not abide by the limits on hours could have training posts taken away in addition to the possibility of facing legal action from disgruntled doctors.

Under the doctors' New Deal agreement of 1991, the doctors should not be on their feet working for more than 56 hours a week, or do more than 72 hours of total work (including time spent on call).

The limits were initially introduced as guidance and have applied to first year doctors since 2001, but they will now be contractually binding for all junior doctors.

Trusts also face another obstacle in a year's time when they have to implement the European Working Time Directive, which is even more stringent.

Nobody wants to see doctors being forced to take legal action, but... it could happen Dr Jo Hilborne BMA

But a BMA survey earlier this month showed more than half of senior house officers and registrars are still working above the 56-hour limit.

It found almost a quarter are working over 70 hours a week.

The BMA pointed to the Department of Health's own figures, which showed only a quarter of trusts in England completely abide by the New Deal.

The BMA said it is worried about some of the things trusts are doing in order to meet the deadline.

Its survey suggested many doctors do not believe their hours are being monitored accurately.

The association also says there have been instances of doctors being put under pressure to lie so that managers can be seen to meet the target.

Dr Jo Hilborne, joint deputy chairman of the BMA's Junior Doctors Committee, said: "We need to consign the days of patients being treated by dangerously tired doctors to the past, and this is an important milestone.

"However, despite the fact that hospitals have known about the deadline for 12 years, only a quarter have done enough to meet it.

"Nobody wants to see doctors being forced to take legal action, but because of the lack of preparation of some trusts, it could happen."

No excuse

Dr Evan Harris MP, Liberal Democrat health spokesman, is a former representative for junior doctors who was involved in negotiating aspects of the New Deal agreement.

He said: "There is no excuse for this failure.

"The pledge to reduce junior doctors' hours has been riddled with broken promises, under-funding and fraudulent claims of compliance over the last decade.

"Patients and young doctors deserve modern working practices.

"Successive Governments have failed to provide the expansion of senior doctors needed to take on the workload, supervision and training of additional juniors colleagues, while the medical establishment has been far too resistant to changing working practices."