Traditional leaders in the Eastern Cape say they will meet striking doctors on Tuesday in a bid to persuade them to return to work.

"Everybody in our hospitals is suffering," said Chief Mangliso Bokleni, of the Gibisela authority in the Libode area.

He said he was one of six Libode chiefs who would hold talks with striking Mthatha hospital doctors in the Transkei town.

He said they wanted to hear the doctors' reasons for the strike, but also hoped to persuade them to return to work.

Provincial health MEC Phumulo Masualle was on Tuesday morning meeting strikers in Port Elizabeth, department spokesman Sizwe Kupelo said.

He said the meeting was one of a series Masualle had been having with strikers since last week in various centres he had been visiting.

The department was however pressing ahead with its application for a Labour Court interdict against the strike, Kupelo said.

He said the department had been contacted by a doctor who said she had been intimidated into joining the strike, and was seeking advice.

"If you do not want to be part of the strike, you must be at work," Kupelo said.

"If you feel threatened, you must notify management and they will ensure your safety."