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The British Medical Association (BMA) has sounded a caution against what it calls widespread "scaremongering" concerning the current flu outbreak, as its members decide on the possibility of scheduled industrial action in England next week.

Union Response to Ministerial Concerns

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

BMA resident doctors committee chair, Dr Jack Fletcher, said that while the union was not "diminishing" 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.

Strike Ballot and Potential Schedule

The decision of a union vote is expected on Monday. If the offer is turned down, a week-long walkout will commence on Wednesday.

The government says its offer includes laws that gives preference to British medical graduates for training posts starting next year and offers to subsidize training expenses.

However, the deal does not include a pay rise. The Prime Minister has written that pay for resident doctors has increased by 28.9% over the past three years.

Calls for Attention on a Deal

In a statement, the BMA appealed to 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, saying that, should there be a strike, resident doctors may be called in to work to "maintain safe patient care."

Political Reaction and Influenza Data

In an interview with media, Mr. Streeting said the current situation was "perhaps the worst pressure the NHS has faced since Covid." He questioned why the BMA hadn't accepted an offer to push the strike back to January.

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

Concerning the flu outbreak, health officials note it has come early this winter. Approximately 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 start from 2021 and so do not capture the two worst flu seasons of the past 15 years.

In spite of the increasing figures, the medical director for the NHS in London said the flu situation was "under control" of what the NHS could manage and that hospitals were better prepared for large disease outbreaks since the Covid pandemic.

The BMA stated it will ask its members whether the government's latest offer will be sufficient to avert Wednesday's strikes. Should members indicate yes, a formal follow-up referendum would be held on resolving the dispute entirely.