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The leading doctors' union has raised an alarm against what it calls widespread "alarmist rhetoric" about the current influenza outbreak, as its members consider if they should proceed with scheduled industrial action in England the coming week.

BMA Response to Ministerial Worries

This follows after the Health Minister, Wes Streeting, expressed "very anxious" about the potential "combined impact" of rising numbers of flu patients in hospitals and the forthcoming junior doctor strikes.

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

"As doctors, we at the BMA wish to ensure that patients remain safe," correspondence from the union noted.

Strike Vote and Potential Schedule

The decision of a BMA ballot is due on Monday. If it is rejected, a week-long walkout will begin on Wednesday.

The government states its deal includes measures that prioritises British medical graduates for training posts starting next year and offers to subsidize exam fees.

But, the deal does not include a salary increase. Sir Keir Starmer has written that pay for resident doctors has grown by 28.9% over the past three years.

Calls for Focus on a Solution

In a release, the BMA urged the health secretary to "focus his time and attention 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 BMA has also contacted chief executives of NHS Trusts in England, saying that, in the event of a strike, resident doctors may be required to return to work to "ensure safe patient care."

Government Reaction and Influenza 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 accepted an offer to push the strike back to January.

Echoing the health secretary, the prime minister said the "irresponsible" strikes "should not happen" while the NHS is facing its "most precarious moment since the pandemic."

Concerning the flu outbreak, experts 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.

It is important to note, these records start from 2021 and so do not include 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 cope with and that hospitals were better prepared for large disease outbreaks since the Covid pandemic.

The union stated it will ask its members whether the government's latest offer will be enough to cancel Wednesday's strikes. If members indicate yes, a second ballot would be held on ending the dispute entirely.