Ottawa’s pediatric hospital is warning that the large volume of influenza patients it’s seeing could continue to climb in the coming weeks after a nearly record-breaking month of admissions.
In an update posted to its website this week, CHEO says it admitted 73 influenza cases in November, second only in its history to one month during the H1N1 pandemic in 2009.
The hospital says it has seen a “staggering increase” in flu cases in recent days, with the typical peak of flu season still ahead.
CHEO says its regional lab has identified 992 cases of influenza since September, with weekly cases already more than double what was reported at the height of its 2019 flu season.
The surge in flu cases comes as CHEO recently saw a record number of monthly admissions for respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, with 149 cases, though the hospital’s president has said admissions for that illness are plateauing.
Last week, CHEO brought in two teams from the Canadian Red Cross for support after announcing it had cut back on surgeries and redeployed staff to deal with unprecedented pressures on its intensive care unit and emergency department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 13, 2022.
