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The leading doctors' union has raised an alarm against what it calls public "fearmongering" about the present influenza outbreak, as its members consider if they should proceed with impending walkouts in England next week.

BMA Reaction to Ministerial Worries

This follows after the Health Minister, Wes Streeting, expressed "extremely worried" about the potential "combined impact" of rising numbers of flu patients in hospitals and the approaching resident doctor strikes.

The head of the BMA's resident doctors' group, Dr Jack Fletcher, remarked 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," correspondence from the union stated.

Strike Ballot and Possible Schedule

The decision of a union vote is expected on Monday. Should members vote no, a week-long walkout will commence on Wednesday.

The government argues its deal includes legislation that gives preference to British medical graduates for specialty training jobs starting next year and offers to pay for professional development costs.

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

Calls for Focus on a Deal

In a statement, the BMA called on 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 contacted chief executives of NHS Trusts in England, recognizing that, in the event of a strike, resident doctors may be called in to work to "maintain safe patient care."

Political Reaction and Influenza Data

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 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 vulnerable moment since the pandemic."

Regarding the flu outbreak, experts note it has arrived sooner than usual this winter. An average of 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 start from 2021 and so do not include the two worst flu seasons of the past 15 years.

Despite the rising numbers, 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 said it will ask its members whether the government's latest offer will be sufficient to call off Wednesday's strikes. Should members agree, a formal follow-up referendum would be held on ending the dispute completely.