Kids should get flu shots to head off another hospital crisis, top doctor says

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This article was published 08/11/2023 (716 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba’s top doctor is urging caregivers to take their kids for a flu shot as soon as possible as vaccine uptake among children hovers below four per cent.

Chief provincial public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin said Wednesday the province wants to avoid a repeat of last year, when respiratory viruses pushed Winnipeg’s Children’s Hospital to its limit.

“We know with influenza every year those under five — there’s a fair amount of severe outcomes and illness in that age group. And we see that in the southern hemisphere again this year,” Roussin said in an interview. “So we really want to get those youngsters vaccinated, with especially the influenza shot.”

As of Oct. 28 — the most recent provincial data — 3.3 per cent of children age four and under had received their flu shot. Three per cent of youth 17 and under had their shot. A year ago, as of Nov. 12, uptake in both of those age groups was about six per cent.

While it’s still relatively early in the flu season, Roussin described uptake in that age group as “fairly low.”

Compared to last year, the respiratory virus season has started later, giving the public more time to get immunized before viruses begin circulating at high levels, the province’s top doctor noted.

Last fall, a surge in respiratory syncytial virus and influenza cases among kids forced the Children’s Hospital to postpone elective surgeries and redeploy nurses to the pediatric critical-care unit, which exceeded its baseline beds.

By mid-December, the hospital reported double the pre-pandemic rate of children needing intensive care owing to the influx in cases.

“We had a very early, and a very sharp peak, of influenza and RSV, and that’s where we saw the over-census pediatric ICU beds and overwhelmed children’s ER,” Roussin said. “We really want to ensure that we’re not forgetting that that’s a high risk group for influenza.”

Roussin noted last year the spread of influenza and subsequent hospitalizations were similar to what was observed during flu season in the southern hemisphere.

This year, flu season south of the equator was “much more typical” but still led to children being admitted to hospital, he said.

Flu-shot uptake last season was also fairly high, with about 20 per cent coverage in the zero-to-four age group, Roussin said. Public health would like to see similar — if not higher — numbers this year.

Among older Manitobans, vaccine uptake has been strong, with nearly 26 per cent coverage among those 65-plus, with many opting for the available high-dose vaccine. Roussin said public health would like to see that number top 60 per cent this year.

Compared to last year, about 22,000 fewer flu shots have been administered to date.

“Last year’s respiratory virus season was much earlier than this year’s and that drives uptake,” the doctor explained.

He encouraged Manitobans not to wait to get their seasonal flu shots and COVID-19 boosters.

“This is the time to get those shots, not once we see high numbers circulating,” he said. “We really want to take the opportunity that this year is giving us a bit more time to get those numbers up.”

To date, data shows fewer people are getting their COVID-19 booster shot compared to those who are getting the flu shot, Roussin said.

“We know there’s some people who might be holding out because they’ve had their shot within the last six months or they may have recently recovered from COVID,” the top doctor said. “So it’s difficult to calculate who’s really eligible.”

Public health wants to see COVID-19 booster uptake at comparable rates to the flu shot, especially among Manitobans who are over the age of 65, Roussin said.

Unless a health-care provider has given specific advice about what brand of COVID-19 vaccine to take, Roussin said there is no longer a distinction between Moderna and Pfizer mRNA shots.

At this time, hospitals are not yet seeing increased pressures owing to respiratory viruses, but the health system is preparing for a very busy season, he said.

“When we got into early fall, we saw increased COVID activity, but that has stayed relatively stable up until now, and we don’t see a lot of influenza or RSV activity yet,” he said.

“We’ll expect to see that in the coming weeks, and like all respiratory virus seasons, we’re going to see that translate into increasing pressures in every aspect of the health-care system.”

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca