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The British Medical Association (BMA) has raised an alarm against what it calls public "fearmongering" regarding the current influenza outbreak, while its members decide on the possibility of impending walkouts in England next week.

BMA Reaction to Ministerial Concerns

This statement arrives after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, expressed "extremely worried" 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, said that while the union was not "diminishing" the impact of flu, Mr. Streeting "should not 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 stated.

Industrial Action Vote and Possible Schedule

The decision of a members' referendum is scheduled for Monday. If the offer is turned down, a week-long walkout will commence on Wednesday.

The government states its deal includes measures that prioritises British medical graduates for training posts starting next year and offers to pay for professional development costs.

But, 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.

Appeals for Focus on a Deal

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

Political Response and Influenza Statistics

Speaking to 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 taken up an offer to reschedule the industrial action to January.

Repeating 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 come early this winter. Around 2,660 patients per day were in hospital with flu in England last week – the greatest for this time of year since records began in 2021.

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

Despite the increasing figures, the senior doctor 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 indicated it will ask its members whether the government's latest offer will be sufficient to cancel Wednesday's strikes. If members agree, a detailed vote would be held on ending the dispute for good.