Flu crippling emergency rooms around the Lower Mainland
Posted January 13, 2013 12:55 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – It is a nasty virus that is keeping hospital workers a lot busier these days.
The flu is crippling emergency rooms around the Lower Mainland.
The number of people with the illness heading to the ER is 50 per cent greater than the peak seen in years before says Dr. Paul Van Buynder with the Fraser Health Authority.
“These are people who are quite unwell and they’re attending in numbers that are unprecedented over the last few years and putting a lot of strain on our emergency rooms.”
He says at its peak about 1,500 flu patients rushed to hospitals last week.
But the worst may not be over. Dr. Patricia Daly with the Vancouver Coastal Health is bracing for a spike in February. “so far our peak for flu was at the end of December but we could still see significant activity over the coming weeks.”
Both health authorities are urging people to get their flu shots if they haven’t done so yet.
