B.C. health officials encourage mask-wearing, getting shots as respiratory illnesses surge – CBC
Health Minister Adrian Dix says B.C. doing better than Ontario with hospitals not over capacity
Nov 14, 2022
Health officials in B.C. are watching a surge in respiratory illness and its impact on the health-care system in Ontario while stressing the importance of getting vaccines and wearing masks as protective measures.
The federal flu watch report from Oct. 30 to Nov. 5, which was published on Monday, said that “at the national level, influenza activity has crossed the seasonal threshold, indicating the start of an influenza epidemic.”
“We’re very concerned,” said Dr. Jana Davidson, chief medical officer at B.C. Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. “Emergency room presentations are up 20 per cent year on year.”
On Monday in Ontario, that province’s chief medical officer strongly recommended Ontarians wear masks in all public settings, including in schools and child-care settings, as the health-care system is strained by the triple threat of COVID-19 infections, a rise in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza.
Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/respiratory-illness-fall-winter-b-c-2022-1.6651617
