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The British Medical Association (BMA) has issued a warning against what it calls public "scaremongering" concerning the ongoing influenza outbreak, as its members decide on if they should proceed with scheduled industrial action in England next week.

Union Response to Ministerial Concerns

This comes after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, expressed "deeply concerned" about the potential "double whammy" of increasing figures of flu patients in hospitals and the forthcoming resident doctor strikes.

The head of the BMA's resident doctors' group, Dr Jack Fletcher, said that while the union was not "minimizing" the effect of flu, Mr. Streeting "should not be scaremongering the public into thinking that the NHS will not be able to look after them."

"In our role as physicians, we at the BMA wish to ensure that patients remain safe," a letter from the union noted.

Strike Vote and Possible Schedule

The outcome of a BMA ballot is expected on Monday. If the offer is turned down, a industrial action lasting five days will begin on Wednesday.

Ministers argues its proposal includes measures that prioritises British medical graduates for training posts starting next year and offers to cover the costs exam fees.

However, the deal omits a wage hike. Sir Keir Starmer has written that pay for resident doctors has risen by 28.9% over the past three years.

Calls for Focus on a Solution

In a release, the BMA called on the health secretary to "concentrate on offering a deal that will stop next week's strikes going ahead, rather than making claims that strike action could cause the NHS to collapse."

The union has also written to chief executives of NHS Trusts in England, recognizing that, in the event of a strike, resident doctors may be called in to work to "ensure safe patient care."

Political Reaction and Flu Statistics

In an interview with media, Mr. Streeting said the present circumstances was "perhaps the worst pressure the NHS has faced since Covid." He asked why the BMA hadn't taken up an offer to reschedule the industrial action to January.

Repeating the health secretary, the prime minister said the "reckless" strikes "ought not to go ahead" while the NHS is facing its "most vulnerable moment since the pandemic."

Concerning the flu outbreak, health officials note it has arrived sooner than usual this winter. An average of 2,660 patients per day were in hospital with flu in England last week – the greatest for this time of year on record in 2021.

However, these records only date back to 2021 and so do not capture the two worst flu seasons of the past 15 years.

In spite of the increasing figures, the senior doctor for the NHS in London said the flu situation was "within manageable limits" of what the NHS could manage and that hospitals were better prepared for large disease outbreaks since the Covid pandemic.

The union indicated it will ask its members whether the government's latest offer will be sufficient to cancel Wednesday's strikes. Should members vote in favor, a detailed vote would be held on ending the dispute entirely.