Thanksgiving is right around the corner and all of a sudden it seems like everyone鈥檚 getting sick. COVID-19 screwed up my impression of when virus season starts, but I thought, 鈥淚sn鈥檛 the flu supposed to come in the winter? Doesn鈥檛 everyone usually get sick after the holidays?鈥�
I鈥檝e been talking with doctors and public health experts who have confirmed I鈥檓 not crazy. Viruses have arrived early this year and already have stretched some hospital resources thin.
At an Ohio Department of Health news conference on Tuesday, pediatric hospitals in Northeast Ohio said that they鈥檙e overwhelmed by large numbers of seriously ill children. Some Ohio hospitals are even canceling surgeries and rejecting patient transfer requests from other states. I鈥檝e reported that some patients have been in Northeast Ohio ERs.
It鈥檚 what doctors were afraid of when they warned of 鈥� respiratory syncytial virus, influenza and COVID-19 possibly overlapping and making a lot of people sick this fall and winter.
Health experts say it鈥檚 unusual for so many viruses to hit at once. RSV is a seasonal illness that sickens kids every year. They don鈥檛 know exactly why its raging now, but doctors think it may have something to do with the fact that COVID-19 kept many of us separated and wearing masks in 2020, so . Doctors say pregnant mothers and infants not having the antibodies from exposure to the virus during that year could mean they鈥檙e more susceptible to it now.
By public health officials鈥� expectations, this is also the start of a bad flu season. UH Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital Dr. Claudia Hoyen said we are already seeing many flu admissions to our area hospitals. Cuyahoga County, sadly, counted its last week after a 13-year-old boy died.
RSV and the flu can be serious for children, so to see whether their child has trouble breathing, severe dehydration or discoloration of the skin, among other symptoms. At the same time, we鈥檙e all well aware of the danger of hospitals filling up as we saw when COVID-19 peaked, so doctors are suggesting people to reach out to their primary care physicians before their child is so sick they need to go to the ER.
The message I keep hearing from doctors is that it鈥檚 important to stay vigilant and there are some things you can to do to keep your community safe. This year鈥檚 flu shot seems pretty effective at keeping the virus at bay. Common sense strategies like keeping your kid home if they鈥檙e sick, handwashing and wearing a mask when you can will also help stop spread.
I have a lot to be thankful for this year, including three healthy grandparents. I鈥檓 excited to drive home and bake my favorite pies (key lime and apple) with them next week, so I know I鈥檒l feel a lot more comfortable wearing a mask this week, just to be safe.
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