Reported cases of the flu in Chatham-Kent are down 50 per cent from the same time last season, but the flu season is far from over.
Laura Zettler, an epidemiologist with the Chatham-Kent Public Health Unit, said as of the end of December, there were 12 lab-confirmed cases of Type A Influenza in the municipality, which is down from 24 at the end of the same month in 2017. She added there have been zero confirmed cases of the Type B strain so far this season.
Zettler said last season was more of an outlier and this season is on par with the norm. However, she pointed out that the calculations only pertain to confirmed cases and not everyone with symptoms is tested.
"If people do report to the emergency department with influenza-like symptoms, they only get tested if they are admitted to the hospital," Zettler said. "We know there is a real degree of underreporting and under testing. It makes it even more difficult to get at the accurate picture but we do know that it is circulating. We know that it is out there so that's the most important part."
The epidemiologist said January is the most viral month for the flu. The month had 53 cases reported last year which was just under half the 117 total for the season. She said the number was upwards of 50 more reported cases than the average season.
"Whether or not the influenza season had more cases or just more reporterd cases, we can't confirm," Zettler said. "It is always kind of a guessing game as to what to expect for the influenza season but some of our provincial sources are pointing towards increased activity in the last week."
Zettler said emergency visits due to respiratory problems in Chatham-Kent are considered moderate compared to the rest of the province, and account for roughly 20 per cent. She added the health unit doesn't know why some areas get hit harder than others because there are simply too many factors to consider.
The epidemiologist said the health unit can't calculate public immunization numbers either anymore, because it supplies the vaccine to clinics and doesn't know how many they give out. Zettler added the unit used to run vaccine clinics and roughly 30 per cent of the public would be immunized on average.
According to Lisa Northcotte, vice president of the Chatham-Kent Health Alliance (CKHA), the hospital is on par with the rest of the municipality with 20 per cent of its total visits being respiratory in nature. She added the rest of the Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) is at 14 per cent, so the CKHA is a bit higher than average.
Northcott didn't have numbers to compare to last year but said the hospital has been running at over 100 per cent capacity and the $300,000 provided by the LHIN for flu season has been put to good use.
"With that money, we have been able to staff five additional beds which we have kept full so that has been very helpful," Northcott said. "Although we haven't admitted a lot of patients with influenza-like illness into the hospital, we have certainly been running over capacity in all of our acute care areas."
While Northcott also couldn't provide public immunization numbers, she said 61 per cent of the staff at the hospital has been vaccinated, which is up 10 per cent from the same time last year.