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The British Medical Association (BMA) has raised an alarm against what it calls public "alarmist rhetoric" about the current flu outbreak, while its members decide on whether to carry out scheduled industrial action in England next week.

Union Response to Government Worries

This statement arrives after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, stated he was "very anxious" about the potential "double whammy" 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, remarked 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 stated.

Industrial Action Vote and Potential Timeline

The outcome of a BMA ballot is expected on Monday. If it is rejected, a week-long walkout will start on Wednesday.

The government argues its proposal includes laws that gives preference to British medical graduates for specialty training jobs starting next year and offers to subsidize professional development costs.

However, the deal excludes a wage hike. The Prime Minister has commented that pay for resident doctors has grown by 28.9% over the past three years.

Calls for Attention on a Solution

In a announcement, the BMA urged the health secretary to "devote his efforts 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 notified chief executives of NHS Trusts in England, recognizing that, in the event of a strike, resident doctors may be asked to come back to work to "uphold safe patient care."

Political Response and Flu Statistics

Speaking to media, Mr. Streeting said the current situation was "perhaps the worst pressure the NHS has faced since Covid." He asked why the BMA hadn't accepted an offer to reschedule the industrial action to January.

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

Regarding the flu outbreak, health officials note it has arrived sooner than usual this winter. Around 2,660 patients per day were in hospital with flu in England last week – the highest for this time of year since records began 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.

Despite the rising numbers, the medical director for the NHS in London said the flu situation was "well within the boundaries" of what the NHS could manage and that hospitals were better prepared for large disease outbreaks since the Covid pandemic.

The union said it will ask its members whether the government's latest offer will be enough to call off Wednesday's strikes. If members agree, a detailed vote would be held on ending the dispute entirely.