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The leading doctors' union has issued a warning against what it calls public "fearmongering" regarding the present flu outbreak, while its members decide on if they should proceed with planned strikes in England next week.

Union Reaction to Government Concerns

This statement arrives after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, stated he was "deeply concerned" about the looming "double whammy" of rising numbers 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 "downplaying" the impact of flu, Mr. Streeting "ought not to 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.

Industrial Action Ballot and Possible Timeline

The outcome of a union vote is scheduled for Monday. If the offer is turned down, a week-long walkout will start on Wednesday.

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

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

Appeals for Attention on a Deal

In a statement, the BMA appealed to 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, saying that, should there be a strike, resident doctors may be asked to come back to work to "uphold safe patient care."

Government Response and Flu Statistics

In an interview with media, Mr. Streeting said the present circumstances was "probably 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.

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

Concerning 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.

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

Despite the rising numbers, 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 more ready for large disease outbreaks since the Covid pandemic.

The union 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 second ballot would be held on ending the dispute entirely.