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The leading doctors' union has issued a warning against what it calls public "alarmist rhetoric" about the current influenza outbreak, as its members vote on if they should proceed with planned strikes in England next week.

Union Reaction to Government Concerns

This follows after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, expressed "deeply concerned" about the potential "one-two punch" of soaring counts of flu patients in hospitals and the approaching resident doctor strikes.

The head of the BMA's resident doctors' group, Dr Jack Fletcher, said that while the union was not "minimizing" the effect of flu, Mr. Streeting "must avoid 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 Potential Schedule

The result of a union vote is due on Monday. If it is rejected, a week-long walkout will start on Wednesday.

The government argues its proposal includes legislation that prioritises British medical graduates for training posts starting next year and offers to subsidize exam fees.

However, the deal excludes a salary increase. 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 Solution

In a announcement, the BMA urged 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 BMA has also notified chief executives of NHS Trusts in England, saying that, should there be a strike, resident doctors may be required to return 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 questioned why the BMA hadn't accepted an offer to push the strike back to January.

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

Regarding 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 since records began 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 senior doctor for the NHS in London said the flu situation was "well within the boundaries" of what the NHS could cope with and that hospitals were more ready 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. Should members vote in favor, a detailed vote would be held on resolving the dispute completely.