Dr. Bonnie Henry, provincial health officer, speaks in the legislature press theater in Victoria, BC, on March 10. CHAD HIPOLITO/The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is urging parents to get their children vaccinated against the flu, as provincial governments across the country scramble to deal with hospitals overwhelmed by sick children.
Hospitalizations of children with the flu have skyrocketed across the country, with more children admitted with the flu than at any time in at least a decade, according to surveillance data.
Mr. Trudeau said Monday he is alarmed by the rise in respiratory illnesses and called on Canadians to “take a step back” to get vaccinated against both COVID-19 and the flu to keep their families and communities safe .
“I’m very concerned about what Canadian children are dealing with right now. Families are really worried about whether they’re going to be able to get their children to the hospital,” he told reporters at an unrelated news conference.
Flu surges after RSV, COVID-19 to overwhelm Canada’s children’s hospitals
British Columbia is headed for a record year for flu shots, but a push to protect the elderly has left behind the most vulnerable group: children under 5. This weekend, public health officials are launching a flu shot for young children who are most at risk of serious illness.
More than half of BC’s seniors have gotten a flu shot this year, but only 20% of children between the ages of six months and 4 years have gotten a flu shot. With the holiday season upon us, health officials expect to increase that rate next week.
Dr. Bonnie Henry, provincial health officer, said at a news conference Monday that the annual flu season arrived early, in mid-November. At the time, BC Children’s Hospital was already canceling dozens of surgeries due to staff shortages and an increase in respiratory infections. It’s the flu, not COVID-19, that’s driving the patient load, and the virus hasn’t peaked yet, according to Dr. Henry.
“We’re still early in this flu trajectory. We’re starting to see the impact of a large number of children who haven’t been exposed to the flu for a number of years, and a small proportion of them are getting seriously ill “, he said. “But we still have time to soften the impact.”
Pediatric emergency services at major hospitals have already been reorganized to deal with the surge in cases in the province, but BC Children’s Hospital briefly activated a “Code Orange” alert Saturday morning because it did not have of the resources to manage the demand.
BC Health Minister Adrian Dix told reporters the province has taken a number of steps to mitigate the pressure, including adding pediatricians to treat patients in the Victoria General Hospital’s emergency department and the creation of an emergency satellite clinic at BC Children’s. Starting next week, Surrey Memorial Hospital will place emergency physicians at the Surrey Urgent and Primary Care Center so it can redirect some patients, and Peace Arch Hospital will offer pediatric services in its clinic d ‘fast attention
In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford’s government faced questions Monday about how it may have allowed a surge in patients to force one of its premier pediatric institutions, the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa, to ask the Red Cross for help.
Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser, CHEO’s local MP in the Ottawa South riding, said this shows the government had not properly planned for the rise in illnesses in the fall.
“It’s absolutely incredible to me that we’re calling on an organization that deals with humanitarian disasters to help,” said Mr. Fraser.
During question period, Ontario Opposition NDP Leader Peter Tabuns said the move shows the government was caught up in the situation at children’s hospitals. Progressive Conservative MP Robin Martin, the parliamentary assistant to the province’s health minister, responded by saying the inclusion of the Red Cross “was certainly part of our planning to make sure we had the care we needed to to pediatric patients at CHEO and other pediatric hospitals.” However, Hannah Jensen, spokeswoman for Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones, later said calling on the Red Cross to help hospitals was not part of the plan of increased government.
Mr. Ford, joined by the prime minister for an unrelated announcement at a GM plant in Ingersoll, Ont., praised CHEO CEO Alex Munter for “thinking outside the box” in dealing with the situation at his hospital . But he stopped short of a question about whether using the Red Cross was part of the government’s plans, instead listing his pledges to increase health care funding and the number of nurses.
In Alberta, 65 staff members have been redeployed to the Rotary Flames House and five outpatient clinics to help with increased respiratory illnesses. Some medical staff have also given up corporate positions to work on the front lines, said Margaret Fullerton, senior operations officer at Alberta Children’s Hospital.
In the affected clinics, Ms Fullerton said there is a 30 to 50 per cent reduction in services related to orthopedics, nephrology, gastrointestinal, pulmonary and surgical services. He said patients with urgent needs will continue to be prioritized at these clinics, but other appointments will be postponed.
Ms Fullerton said there are contingency plans at the hospital in case respiratory care needs grow, but did not provide details. Kerry Williamson, spokeswoman for Alberta Health Services, said there are no plans at this time to seek support from outside agencies, such as the Red Cross in Ottawa.
Alberta Health Minister Jason Copping said Monday that there are signs that a surge in flu cases could subside soon, but acknowledged that future bouts of respiratory infections are likely in the coming months. He said the government is finding ways to move people through the system faster, but the long-term focus is on building capacity.