🔗 Share this article

The British Medical Association (BMA) has sounded a caution against what it calls widespread "fearmongering" about the current influenza outbreak, while its members decide on the possibility of scheduled industrial action in England next week.

Union Reaction to Government Worries

This statement arrives after the Health Minister, Wes Streeting, expressed "very anxious" about the looming "double whammy" of rising numbers of flu patients in hospitals and the approaching junior doctor strikes.

The head of the BMA's resident doctors' group, Dr Jack Fletcher, remarked that while the union was not "downplaying" the effect 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," correspondence from the union stated.

Industrial Action Ballot and Possible Schedule

The outcome of a members' referendum is due on Monday. If the offer is turned down, a week-long walkout will begin on Wednesday.

Ministers states its proposal includes measures that prioritises British medical graduates for specialty training jobs starting next year and offers to cover the costs exam fees.

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

Appeals for Attention on a Deal

In a release, the BMA urged 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 BMA has also written to chief executives of NHS Trusts in England, recognizing that, should there be a strike, resident doctors may be called in to work to "ensure safe patient care."

Government Reaction and Flu Data

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

Repeating the health secretary, the prime minister said the "irresponsible" 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. Approximately 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 start from 2021 and so do not include the two worst flu seasons of the past 15 years.

In spite of the rising numbers, the senior doctor for the NHS in London said the flu situation was "well within the boundaries" 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 avert Wednesday's strikes. If members agree, a detailed vote would be held on ending the dispute for good.