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The leading doctors' union has raised an alarm against what it calls widespread "scaremongering" regarding the present influenza outbreak, as its members vote on the possibility of impending walkouts in England the coming week.

BMA Reaction to Ministerial Concerns

This comes after the Health Minister, Wes Streeting, expressed "deeply concerned" about the potential "one-two punch" of increasing figures of flu patients in hospitals and the upcoming junior doctor strikes.

The head of the BMA's resident doctors' group, Dr Jack Fletcher, said that while the union was not "minimizing" 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 declared.

Industrial Action Ballot and Possible Timeline

The decision of a union vote is due on Monday. Should members vote no, a five-day strike will commence on Wednesday.

Ministers argues its deal includes laws that prioritises British medical graduates for training posts starting next year and offers to cover the costs training expenses.

However, the deal does not include a wage hike. Sir Keir Starmer has commented that pay for resident doctors has grown by 28.9% over the past three years.

Appeals for Focus on a Solution

In a statement, 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 contacted chief executives of NHS Trusts in England, saying that, should there be a strike, resident doctors may be called in to work to "ensure safe patient care."

Government Reaction and Flu Data

Speaking to 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 taken up an offer to push the strike back to January.

Echoing the health secretary, the prime minister said the "reckless" strikes "should not happen" 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. An average of 2,660 patients per day were in hospital with flu in England last week – the greatest for this time of year on record 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.

In spite of the increasing figures, the medical director for the NHS in London said the flu situation was "within manageable limits" of what the NHS could cope with 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. Should members vote in favor, a second ballot would be held on resolving the dispute for good.