Flu Bug Tightens Grip
H1N1: London and Middlesex has a rate of infection running at double the average for Ontario
By JOHN MINER
Last Updated: 3rd November 2009, 4:45pm
H1N1 flu is widespread in London and Middlesex and getting worse with the rate of infection running at double the average for Ontario.
The increasing illness, reported yesterday by the Middlesex-London Health Unit, comes as hundreds of residents turn to their family doctor in hopes of getting access to the vaccine.
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A spokesperson for the AIM Health Clinic at 140 Oxford St. E. said they have been receiving about 500 calls a day from people asking for a doctor-administered vaccine instead of going to a public health clinic.
The latest report on pandemic flu in London and Middlesex showed that 25 people with lab-confirmed H1N1 infection were admitted to hospital last week. The good news is there have been no deaths in the city and county from the virus and there are no outbreaks in long-term care homes.
But results of tests on individuals here with respiratory illness have indicated 57.9% had H1N1 compared to 31.7% for the rest of the province.
The health unit also reported the proportion of patients arriving at emergency departments with symptoms of fever and respiratory illness is continuing to climb.
Last week, 64% of patients at the children’s emergency department in London had symptoms of respiratory illness.
That’s up from 3% in the summer.
Classrooms also are being hit hard.
Absence reports from schools last week in London and Middlesex showed that 68% of elementary schools had an absenteeism rate of more than 10% with some schools above 25%. Warshawsky said there is H1N1 flu across all of Ontario, but London and Middlesex are higher than the average.
“We started our influenza cases earlier than the rest of the province . . . We are a little bit ahead, so our numbers are higher.”
Some hospitals in the London area have cancelled surgeries in an effort to handle the influx of flu patients and the Middlesex-London Health Unit has cut back on programs and other vaccination clinics in order to staff the H1N1 vaccine clinics.”
More at
http://www.lfpress.com/news/london/2...-11613226.html
Official indicators of severity are rare, so I include this snippet:
Clinics dealing with shortage
Vaccinations
By LAURA CUDWORTH, SUN MEDIA
Last Updated: 3rd November 2009, 9:22am
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Meanwhile, flu cases are clogging up emergency departments.
“Things are very busy. We’re seeing many patients with flu-like symptoms a day,” said Dr. Miriam Mann, head of emergency medicine for the Huron Perth Healthcare Alliance.
For the most part, the people going to emergency wards are really sick. People with symptoms lasting longer than five days, who are short of breath, have a rapid heart rate or have underlying illnesses like asthma should be getting help.
“The vast majority are coming in appropriately,” Mann said. “We’ve had some very sick people.”
http://www.lfpress.com/news/london/2...13231-sun.html