Commenting on the six-day junior doctors' strike, which ended today at 7am, Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive at NHS Providers said:

"This week's strike by junior doctors – the longest in NHS history – couldn't have come at a tougher time for the health service. 

"Winter pressures and staffing shortages are a huge challenge, compounded by the spike in flu and surge in Covid-19 cases.

"But the timing, scale and duration of this strike action – planned for a week when the NHS could least afford it – took these pressures to another level. 

"Patient safety was, and continues to be, trust leaders' number one priority. 

"Trusts did everything they could to prioritise patient safety and protect emergency and critical care for the most vulnerable patients. 

"Trust leaders told us that the huge strains on urgent and emergency care, maternity services and overnight staffing were a real worry during this walkout. 

"It was this increased concern for patient safety that underpinned the multiple derogation requests made by trusts over the course of this six-day strike, with only two being granted. 

"The full extent of the disruption, demoralisation and financial impact of this walkout will become increasingly apparent in the coming days and weeks.

"But we already know that it is patients who have yet again paid a heavy price with many tens of thousands of appointments likely to be disrupted.

"Leaders across the health service are acutely aware of the knock-on effects for patients who have to wait longer than they should for care. 

"But cancelled appointments are only part of the picture. Worries are mounting for the health and well-being of patients who chose not to come forward for care during the strike. 

"The NHS and its patients simply cannot afford the possibility of junior doctors seeking to extend their strike mandate for another six months.

"The hard-won progress from previous talks between both sides of this dispute – the government and the British Medical Association – must not be lost. It's in everyone's interest now for them to urgently resume negotiations and find a resolution."