COVID, the flu and RSV. Navigating the holiday season amidst a wave of illnesses – GLOBAL

December 19, 2023

As the holiday season gets underway, the joy of gatherings with family and friends intertwines with the challenges of cold and flu season and rising COVID-19 cases in some provinces, prompting warnings from health experts for Canadians to remain vigilant.

Across Canada, the percentage of weekly positive COVID-19 tests was 18.2 per cent as of Dec. 12, with provinces like Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island seeing the highest spike in cases, according to the latest numbers from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC).

“As people are spending more time together indoors, there is an increase in the number of COVID cases that are occurring,” Dr. Brian Conway, medical director of the Vancouver Infectious Disease Centre, told Global News. “In terms of the most severe parts of COVID, there are still three to four deaths per hour across the country from COVID, so it really hasn’t gone away.”

Read more: https://globalnews.ca/news/10176774/covid-flu-holiday-canada-holiday-get-togethers/