MORE than 200,000 appointments and operations were cancelled in last week’s doctors’ strike.
The total has now surpassed half a millon since the start of the stoppages in winter.
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NHS bosses claimed that this had been an enormous impact and called on unions and politicians to end the impasse.
Rishi Sunak refused to compromise on the pay of nurses who threatened to go on strike up until Christmas.
However, the PM stated that this row made it difficult to address the backlog of 7,2 million patients awaiting treatment.
NHS England data shows that from last Tuesday until Saturday, 201.077 doctors were forced to reschedule their appointments.
If you add their strike to the industrial action of nurses and ambulance staff, it totals more than 531,000.
NHS medical director for England Sir Stephen Powis said: “These figures lay bare the colossal impact of industrial action.
“Each of the appointments postponed has an impact on the lives of individuals.
“Our staff now have an immense amount of work to catch up on appointments.”