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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 consider if they should proceed with impending walkouts in England the coming week.

BMA Reaction to Government Concerns

This comes after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, expressed "deeply concerned" about the looming "double whammy" of rising numbers of flu patients in hospitals and the upcoming junior doctor strikes.

BMA resident doctors committee chair, Dr Jack Fletcher, stated that while the union was not "downplaying" 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," correspondence from the union declared.

Industrial Action Vote and Possible Timeline

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

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

However, the deal omits a wage hike. Sir Keir Starmer has stated that pay for resident doctors has grown by 28.9% over the past three years.

Appeals for Focus on a Deal

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

Government Response and Flu Statistics

In an interview with 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.

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

Concerning the flu outbreak, experts 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 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 include 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 cope with and that hospitals were more ready for large disease outbreaks since the Covid pandemic.

The BMA said it will ask its members whether the government's latest offer will be enough to avert Wednesday's strikes. Should members agree, a formal follow-up referendum would be held on ending the dispute for good.