It repeated calls for the walkouts to end and said bosses should not be “forced into this position again”.
English hospitals, GP surgeries and other services were “skating on very thin ice” and in a “highly vulnerable position” in the busiest week of the year.
Flu and winter illnesses, plus absences due to Covid, were piling on the pressure.
The doctors, seeking a 35% pay rise, will walk out from 7am on Wednesday until 7am next Tuesday in the longest-ever NHS strike.
Overall, the number of days lost in 2023 in all sectors of the economy is on track to set a record for the 21st century, reaching three million.
Teachers, civil servants, train drivers and barristers have taken action as well as NHS staff. Professor Peter Turnbull, of Bristol University, said issues of pay, workload and staffing will not go away.
