Dr. Bonnie Henry, provincial health officer, says the province has seen a “dramatic increase” in cases of influenza A, especially H3N2, which can cause serious illness in children.
The province is ramping up its flu vaccination campaign, especially for young children, as hospital emergency services deal with an increase in flu-related visits.
Dr. Bonnie Henry, provincial health officer, said the province is experiencing a “dramatic increase” in cases of influenza A, especially H3N2, which can cause serious illness, especially in children.
The increase began about two weeks ago, and while it is leveling off in older teenagers, it continues to rise in younger children who, along with the elderly, are more susceptible to serious illness and complications.
Henry, speaking at a press conference in Vancouver on Monday with Health Minister Adrian Dix, said it’s not too late for vaccination to make a difference. “We can stop that and we can prevent continued transmission to older adults as we gather around the holiday season, which is often when we see our flu peak.”
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, flu season typically lasted six weeks to two months, peaking after the winter holidays when people flock indoors. Typically in Canada each year, 15,000 to 20,000 people would be hospitalized with the flu and 2,500 to 3,000 would die.
Now, however, it is rising earlier, and the number of influenza A cases has increased greatly, Henry said.
Children’s hospitals across the country have seen an increase in patients, including those affected by COVID-19, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, for which there is no vaccine.
On Monday, critical care beds for children in the province were at 63% capacity, with pediatric high-acuity ICU beds at 85%. (On the island, the numbers were slightly lower: pediatric critical care bed capacity at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital was at 44% of capacity and Victoria General Hospital at 50%). percent capacity.)
At BC Children’s Hospital, where ER wait times were reported as 10 hours on Friday and nine on Saturday, a “code orange” was called that is generally used for disasters and mass casualty incidents in 6:35 a.m. Saturday and canceled 28 minutes later.
Dix said the alert was based on information “available at the time” and was quickly canceled with new information.
Henry said while other respiratory viruses, including RSV, are stabilizing in BC, pediatricians and children’s hospitals are reporting more severe flu and, in some cases, flu complications. Many children have not been exposed to the flu virus during pandemic restrictions and therefore have not built up immunity.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday he is “extremely concerned” about the rise in respiratory illnesses among children, as hospitals across the country report they are struggling to keep up with a high volume of patients .
Trudeau said it is everyone’s responsibility to get vaccinated against both COVID-19 and the flu. He said health officials will consider measures such as mandatory masks.
Influenza A H3N2, which causes more severe illness, especially in children five years of age and younger, is the main strain in circulation. The flu is more of a concern in young children than COVID because it can lead to secondary bacterial infections such as strep or pneumococcus that can cause severe bacterial pneumonia, Henry said.
The vaccine offered this year includes H1N1 and H3N2 and two B strains, and appears to be a “very good” match to the circulating virus, offering 50 to 70 percent protection against infection and disease, he said. Henry said.
In BC, the flu shot is free for anyone six months of age and older through health clinics, doctor’s offices and pharmacies, with enhanced shots for seniors and FluMist for children who can’t tolerate needles.
So far, about 1.5 million British Columbians, including more than 50% of those over 65, have been vaccinated, using about 70% of the current vaccine stock, with more hope.
However, only 20 percent of children six months to 11 years old are vaccinated against the flu, and only 15 percent of those 12 to 17 years old, said Dix, who urged parents to get their children vaccinated. “What we’re seeing among children is a more significant flu season by a very significant margin than last year and that’s reflected in emergency department presentations.”
Emergency room visits in September and October from about 6,700 have increased to 6,800 to 6,900, he said.
Immunized BC executive manager of vaccine operations Dr. Penny Ballem said the province will host a vaccination blitz on Dec. 9, 10 and 11 to get more people vaccinated through pharmacists, family doctors or health authority clinics designed for children, with thousands of appointments available in the GetVaccinated system.
The province will also send emails and text messages to the families of about 150,000 children aged 5 and under to invite them to make an appointment.
BC Green leader Sonia Furstenau, MLA for Cowichan Valley, called on the province to take steps beyond vaccination, including a focus on ventilation, masks and physical distancing.
A large number of children and teachers are missing school because they are sick, children’s rooms and emergency rooms are overflowing and operations for children and babies are being canceled, Furstenau said at a press conference on Monday at the Pan Pacific Hotel in Vancouver. “I am deeply concerned for the children and families in this province right now,” she said.
Dr. Sanjiv Gandhi, a pediatric cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon at BC Children’s Hospital who joined Furstenau at the news conference, said mandating masks is a reasonable and effective tool that should be used in addition to the vaccination
As a heart surgeon, Gandhi said, he is seeing children with viral infections who are sicker than he has seen in decades. “We have all the tools to change the trajectory of this horrible situation, and it is horrible. The only ingredient missing is the courage, the courage of our leaders to be transparent with the public about what is happening in our hospitals.”
Henry said it is now “highly unlikely” that masking in schools will have any effect on the trajectory of the various viruses circulating.
Masks are still required in healthcare settings, he said, but a blanket mask mandate is a “heavy-handed” measure used as a “last resort when it’s something absolutely necessary, everywhere, all the time “.
ceharnett@timescolonist.com
>>> To comment on this article, write a letter to the editor: letters@timescolonist.com