IWK top doctor says Halifax hospital getting ‘slammed’ as flu cases spike
Global News
An explosion of influenza cases continues to place pressure on the largest children's hospital in the Maritimes.
An explosion of influenza cases continues to place pressure on the largest children’s hospital in the Maritimes.
A top doctor with the IWK Health Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, says the early start along with the severity of cases could mean a hectic holiday season, especially if work isn’t done to cut down on the spread.
Dr. Andrew Lynk is the Chief and Chair of Pediatrics at the IWK. He says the hospital is seeing an unprecedented number of kids with respiratory viruses like the flu and Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV) because they weren’t exposed during the pandemic. COVID-19 is also still making the rounds along with the common cold.
“So we’re getting slammed because a lot of kids under the age of five didn’t see the flu, haven’t seen RSV,” Lynk says.
“So in addition to the normal young ones under the age of one or two who would never have seen it because they weren’t born, you’ve got that older group who haven’t seen it. So it’s kind of a double whammy in terms of the volume and the numbers of kids who are getting quite sick.”
A new report from the province shows cases of the flu are continuing to climb amongst most age groups.
It has released its latest Respiratory Watch report, which shows 673 new influenza cases were identified between November 27 to December 3.
The one exception is those aged five to 19, with that age group seeing a decline when compared to the previous report, from 166 to 146. However, Lynk says the report only contains cases that have been reported, adding that the spread in the community is likely much higher.
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