Officials at Windsor Regional Hospital are preparing for unique circumstances during the upcoming influenza season due to a confluence with two other respiratory illnesses - COVID-19 and RSV.
An update on what is being done to prepare for the upcoming season was delivered Thursday to the hospital's board of directors.
Hospital chief of staff, Dr. Wassim Saad, says if it was just the flu season they had to worry about, it would be manageable and on par with previous seasons.
But Saad says what is making this season a bit more unique is the confluence of not just influenza but the resurgence of COVID-19 circulating in the community and Canada-wide, along with RSV.
"The concern of course is that when you have all three respiratory viruses circulating in the community, and you're starting to notice the weather getting colder and people getting indoors, there's sort of a perfect mixture and recipe for higher than average respiratory illnesses that could effect our healthcare system," he says.
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Based on what happened in Australia, which has a flu season earlier than those in the North Hemisphere, officials are predicting the flu season to begin here in mid-to-late October with a quick rise in cases and more hospitalizations due to more acute cases.
Dr. Saad,points out that flu season was almost non-existent during the last few years of the pandemic due to public health measures and masking.
"Now we're starting to see a lot of patients or people who are vulnerable to severe influenza or influenza infections, who may not have been vaccinated and may not have had that exposure over the last couple of years to build up an immunity. You could expect in vulnerable populations a bit more severe illness," he says.
Those in the high risk population are encouraged to make sure they are up to date with your vaccinations for all three illnesses and take protective measures to avoid the spread of the illness including wearing a mask, if needed.
Saad says with the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant, there's always an unknown on whether it will be more infectious or lead to more hospitalizations.
"As with most things COVID, there's so many unknowns and you have to take it day-by-day and week-by-week, and follow the evidence and the science," he says. "That would be the only one that gives us the most pause and reason for pause, thinking about how to plan. It could go from hardly any cases to overwhelming our healthcare capacity very quickly."
Dr. Saad notes that they may have to intensify some of their public health measures at the hospital to avoid a wave of infection that could spread through the healthcare centre but, as of now, everything remains status quo at the hospital.
He says they predict they will be able to manage the situation, but if they get in a situation where they need create more bed space or capacity, some elective procedures may have to be postponed or cancelled.