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The British Medical Association (BMA) has issued a warning against what it calls widespread "scaremongering" concerning the ongoing influenza outbreak, while its members decide on if they should proceed with impending walkouts in England the coming week.

BMA Response to Ministerial Worries

This follows after the Health Minister, Wes Streeting, expressed "very anxious" about the potential "combined impact" of soaring counts of flu patients in hospitals and the approaching junior doctor strikes.

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

Strike Vote and Potential Timeline

The decision of a union vote is due on Monday. If it is rejected, a five-day strike will begin on Wednesday.

Ministers says its offer includes legislation that gives preference to British medical graduates for training posts starting next year and offers to subsidize professional development costs.

But, the deal does not include a pay rise. Sir Keir Starmer has commented that pay for resident doctors has increased by 28.9% over the past three years.

Calls for Focus on a Solution

In a announcement, the BMA called on the health secretary to "devote his efforts 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, indicating that, in the event of a strike, resident doctors may be required to return to work to "maintain safe patient care."

Political Reaction and Influenza Statistics

In an interview with media, Mr. Streeting said the present circumstances was "probably 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, health officials 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 on record in 2021.

However, 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 rising numbers, the medical director for the NHS in London said the flu situation was "under control" of what the NHS could handle 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 enough to call off Wednesday's strikes. If members vote in favor, a formal follow-up referendum would be held on resolving the dispute for good.