🔗 Share this article

The leading doctors' union has raised an alarm against what it calls public "alarmist rhetoric" concerning the current flu outbreak, while its members vote on if they should proceed with scheduled industrial action in England next week.

Union Response to Ministerial Concerns

This comes after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, expressed "very anxious" about the potential "double whammy" of increasing figures of flu patients in hospitals and the upcoming resident doctor strikes.

BMA resident doctors committee chair, Dr Jack Fletcher, stated 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," a letter from the union stated.

Strike Ballot and Potential Timeline

The outcome of a union vote is expected on Monday. If the offer is turned down, a five-day strike will begin on Wednesday.

Ministers states its proposal includes measures that prioritises British medical graduates for training posts starting next year and offers to cover the costs training expenses.

But, the deal omits a wage hike. The Prime Minister has stated that pay for resident doctors has grown by 28.9% over the past three years.

Appeals for Focus on a Solution

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 union has also written to chief executives of NHS Trusts in England, saying that, in the event of a strike, resident doctors may be asked to come back to work to "uphold safe patient care."

Government Reaction and Influenza Statistics

Speaking to media, Mr. Streeting said the present circumstances was "perhaps the worst pressure the NHS has faced since Covid." He asked why the BMA hadn't taken up an offer to push the strike back to January.

Mirroring the health secretary, the prime minister said the "reckless" strikes "should not happen" while the NHS is facing its "most challenging moment since the pandemic."

Regarding the flu outbreak, experts note it has come early 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 since records began in 2021.

It is important to note, these records start from 2021 and so do not include the two worst flu seasons of the past 15 years.

Despite the increasing figures, the medical director for the NHS in London said the flu situation was "well within the boundaries" of what the NHS could handle and that hospitals were more ready 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. If members vote in favor, a second ballot would be held on resolving the dispute for good.