About 200 staff protested outside West Middlesex Hospital today during the first NHS strike over pay for more than 30 years.

Health workers including nurses and midwives brandished brollies outside the hospital in Twickenham Road, Isleworth, as they took part in the national walkout from 7am to 11am.

They were among thousands of NHS workers taking part in industrial action across England and Northern Ireland over demands for a one per cent pay rise for all public health sector staff.

Unison nursing officer Michael Walker, who joined the protest outside West Middlesex Hospital, said: "NHS nurses, midwives, occupational therapists and other staff have been forced to make a stand. Our pay has been cut in real terms by 10 per cent and we feel we are being treated with contempt by this Government.

"We worked very closely with management to ensure adequate staffing on wards and units, and a number of those planning to take action had to go into work to provide emergency cover as we would never jeopardise patient care.

"We're very grateful to the public for their continued support. This dispute is not of our making and we want it resolved as soon as possible."

Today's strike, which involved members of seven unions, will be followed by four days of 'work to rule'.

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt has said hospitals would be forced to lay off around 14,000 nurses in the next two years if it were to meet the pay demands in full.

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, only NHS staff without automatic rises to reward professional development have been awarded the one per cent increase.

However, all NHS staff in Scotland have received the rise, which was recommended by an independent pay review board.

Mr Walker said low pay was making it hard to recruit and retain nurses and midwives, particularly in London, where the cost of living is so high.

"We're massively short of nurses and midwives across London yet the Government is not willing to pay the rates to retain them," he said.

"We're not able to attract nurses and midwives to work in London hospitals and that will impact on the care we can provide."

Mr Walker added that as well as sending staff back into the hospital to provide care, the union gave dispensation to a group of health workers at Heathrow so they could take part in training over Ebola screening.

Cas Shotter, Unison branch secretary at West Middlesex Hospital said: "I am very proud of the dignified protest we have made."