By Charles Lefebvre

Influenza continues to hit province hard

Nov 30, 2017 | 4:11 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB — One month after the influenza season started in Alberta, new numbers released by Alberta Health Services shows how the virus is impacting Albertans.

According to the weekly influenza report, 320 people across the province have been hospitalized with lab confirmed cases of influenza since it began offering influenza immunizations in October.

Dr. Vivien Suttorp, Lead Medical Officer of Health, for the South Zone, says the number of hospitalizations in the province is ahead of what it was at this point last year.

“At this point in time last year, there were 118 individuals hospitalized across the province, and as of today, we have 320,” she said.

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In the South Zone, which includes Medicine Hat and Lethbridge, 59 cases of influenza have been detected through laboratory analysis. Of those cases, 15 people have been hospitalized.

Since the flu season began, laboratory confirmed influenza was detected in the deaths of five people in the province, including one in the South Zone. Three of the deaths have been located in Calgary, while the other death is in Edmonton.

Suttorp says its hard for AHS to determine when exactly the peak of the season will be in the South Zone, noting it can happen between December and February, but stresses to Albertans immunization is key to stop the spread of the illness.

“Get immunized before the peak hits,” she said. “It takes about two weeks for optimal immunity to develop in your body, so get immunized again before we see a further exponential increase in cases.”

The flu season has hit Calgary hard, with 652 confirmed cases resulting in 190 hospitalizations so far this year. Edmonton has 167 confirmed cases and 61 hospitalizations, while the Central zone has seen 137 cases and 29 hospitalizations. There have been 108 confirmed cases in the North Zone, and 25 people have been hospitalized.

Suttorp adds Albertans can take other precautions, such as staying home when sick, to prevent influenza from spreading.

More than 950,000 vaccines have been administered.