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The leading doctors' union has sounded a caution against what it calls public "alarmist rhetoric" about the present influenza outbreak, as its members vote on whether to carry out scheduled industrial action in England the coming week.

Union Reaction to Government Worries

This statement arrives after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, expressed "very anxious" about the looming "one-two punch" 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 stated.

Strike Ballot and Potential Schedule

The result of a union vote is scheduled for Monday. If the offer is turned down, a industrial action lasting five days will start on Wednesday.

The government says its proposal includes laws that prioritises British medical graduates for specialty training jobs starting next year and offers to cover the costs professional development costs.

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

Appeals for Attention on a Deal

In a announcement, 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 BMA has also notified 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 "uphold safe patient care."

Government Reaction and Flu Data

Speaking to media, Mr. Streeting said the current situation was "probably the worst pressure the NHS has faced since Covid." He asked why the BMA hadn't taken up an offer to reschedule the industrial action to January.

Echoing 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."

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 highest 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 capture 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 "under control" of what the NHS could handle and that hospitals were better prepared 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 second ballot would be held on ending the dispute entirely.