Dr. Strang urges caution during holiday season as flu season hits early

Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health is urging Nova Scotians to take precautions as the holiday season is in full swing and virus levels spike across the province.

As people gather to celebrate the holidays, it creates an opportunity for viruses to spread, says Dr. Robert Strang.

"Getting together with loved ones, friends and co-workers is part of this time of year. And people are excited about that, especially after two holiday seasons that certainly weren't what we would call normal by any means. However, even this year is different."

Strang said flu season usually lasts eight to 10 weeks, and it has hit about four weeks earlier than usual this year. It doesn't usually peak until the end of the holiday season, or into January and February, but this year we are already there.

"So that means If we're not careful, there's a lot of potential for passing viruses around as we socialize, which is not so much the norm in typical years. So I'm asking Nova Scotians to be very careful about your social activities."

He said Nova Scotians should wear a mask in crowded indoor spaces, if they're sick and cannot stay home and as they are recovering. Masks should also be worn if people are in close contact with those who are most vulnerable to the impacts of infection. Strang advised anyone who is sick to avoid social gatherings.

Kids' vaccines can soon be given at same time

The chief medical officer of health also urged everyone to get vaccinated against the flu and COVID-19. He said while people receiving the flu shot won't see the benefit of full protection for two weeks, they will get some protection very soon after getting the vaccine.

Strang also announced that starting next week, children aged six months to four years can get their COVID-19 shots at the same time as other vaccines if they choose. Previously, children were advised to space out COVID-19 and flu shots by two weeks.

With less than 20 per cent of children and youth under the age of 20 vaccinated against the flu, vaccination levels are "still far from where we need to be," Strang said.

Flu vaccination rates among older adults are higher, with about 65 per cent to 70 per cent of those who are 65 and older having received a shot.

Strang said uptake of flu shots among children has historically not been high.

With two years of the pandemic and the push for COVID-19 shots, "for whatever reason … too many people have kind of said, we want to move past it," Strang said.

Misinformation online has also likely deterred some from getting vaccinated, he said.

Early spike in influenza A

The province has seen an early spike in influenza A this year. So far, there have been 2,355 lab-confirmed cases of influenza.

There were 686 new cases of influenza A last week, with 100 hospitalizations and eight admissions to the intensive care unit.

Strang said in Canada, flu tends to move from west to east, and his counterparts in western Canada are starting to see signs that virus levels are stabilizing there. In Nova Scotia, flu and RSV levels this week are about the same as last week, so that could be an indication that the virus levels are stabilizing here, too, Strang said.

He said flu cases are also shifting a bit from children to adults, though that shift has not yet had an impact on adult hospitalizations and severe illness.

Other viruses continue to circulate as well, including enterovirus/rhinovirus and COVID-19.

Strang said COVID-19 levels tend to be "quite low and stable," but we'll have to "watch and wait" to see what happens, especially if a new variant emerges that can evade vaccine protection.