Health officials seeing a spike in flu cases

Clark County residents told to got to family physician, not hospital.


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Local hospitals have restricted visits and are asking people with flu symptoms to stay away as epidemic levels of the virus affect the region.

“If they’re not very young or old, and don’t have other respiratory issues, we’re encouraging people to contact their primary care physician and not go to the emergency room,” Bryan Bucklew of the Greater Dayton Hospital Association said Wednesday. “Hospitals are at very full capacity right now, and staff is getting sick as well.”

The number of influenza-related hospitalizations in Ohio has increased dramatically in the past month, according to numbers released Dec. 20 by the Ohio Department of Health. Nearly 2,000 people were hospitalized for the flu in the third week of December, as compared to just 533 people hospitalized the same week last year.

Updated numbers are set to be released by the department Friday.

Health officials in at the Clark County Combined Health District have seen a spike in the number of flu cases this year, but were still compiling updated figures Wednesday afternoon. The health district is also encouraging Clark County residents to see their family physician instead of heading to the local hospital.

Over about the last 12 weeks, the Clark County Combined Health District has recorded about 57 flu-related hospitalizations this year, said Kitty Smith, an infectious disease nurse with the district. During the same time last year, there were 10 hospitalizations, although she cautioned it’s hard to tell when the peak of each flu season occurs.

To prevent spreading the disease, residents need to stay home if ill, send a friend or relative to the pharmacy instead of going themselves, wash hands regularly and dispose of tissues properly, said Becky Bonerigo, a supervisor of nursing at the Clark County Combined Health District.

“Right now if we’re to see any kind of a slowdown in this flu season, it’s going to be because people are really taking their illness seriously and staying home if they are ill,” Smith said.

Bucklew said several factors have contributed to the high levels of flu this year, including the reduced effectiveness of this year’s flu vaccination and the early onset of flu season, hitting people around the holidays when they are traveling and spending time with friends and family.

The sickness has infected staff at hospitals, as well, threatening to decrease staffing levels at a time when the hospitals are at capacity.

“Since the flu shot is less effective this year, all the staff have received the flu shot, but they’re still getting sick as well,” Bucklew said. “We’re facing staffing challenges, just trying to make sure we have enough healthy staff.”

During the week ending Dec. 27, 1,099 cases were reported in the 10-county area including Clark and Champaign counties, according to Bill Wharton, public information officer for Public Health of Dayton and Montgomery County.

But that report does not represent the true number of flu cases, Wharton said.

“The flu is not a disease that everyone, or even many people, report. So when you see numbers associated with the flu, it’s the tip of the iceberg,” he said. “But it does give us an index that tells us we’re having a very, very significant increase in flu cases. We have a lot of sick people out there in our community.”

It’s important for residents to visit their family physician soon after they get sick, Smith said. Otherwise the illness could get worse or it could also be misdiagnosed if it progresses too far and does not show up on a swab test.

“It is important to remember that flu season tends to have peak times,” added Bonerigo. “We’re not sure yet that this is our peak for the year.”

This year’s flu shot included four strains of the virus, one of which was not a strong enough match to adequately prevent the strain, Wharton said.

This year’s virus is also stronger than it has been in previous years, and it is causing a higher and longer-lasting fever in many people affected by the virus.

“We’re encouraging anyone who is sick to stay at home so they don’t go to work and spread it around further. Minimize anything that would tend to spread the flu,” Wharton said. “Be cognizant of the fact that there’s so much flu out there right now.”

Among Ohio’s confirmed hospitalizations this year, 177 have been children age 4 or younger, and 929 have been adults age 65 or older.

There have been two flu-related pediatric deaths in Ohio — a 15-year-old girl in Lawrence County and a 16-year-old boy from Licking County. Adult influenza-associated deaths are not required to be reported to the state health department.

Area hospitals imposed restrictions on visitation last week due to abnormally high rates of hospitalization. The restrictions include: No visitation by anyone who is ill with any respiratory symptoms including coughing or fever, and no visitation by anyone under age 14, even if they have received the seasonal flu vaccine.

“We’re really calling on the public to take this seriously and try to stop the spread,” Bonerigo said.

The Clark County Health District is still offering this year’s flu vaccine, and walk-ins are available from 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Appointments are also available on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons.

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