For Yukoners with chronic illness, the pandemic might be over but the risk remains

For at-risk populations, staying safe during flu season got harder when most people stopped caring about getting sick after the COVID-19 pandemic.

"People are feeling alone, they're feeling very isolated," said Isla Rathlin, a clinical health navigator at Queer Yukon.

Rathlin runs a support group in Whitehorse for "spoonies," or people who are chronically ill or disabled. They meet monthly to share experiences and perspectives, including strategies for staying healthy during flu season.

Some of the group's members still wear a mask and avoid gatherings, Rathlin says. Some people limited participation in group activities over the holidays, despite the expectations of friends and family. House visitors were asked to mask up before coming inside.

"There is danger everywhere, because people aren't masking, people aren't taking care," Rathlin said. "There's this real press to go back to our capitalist lives, at the risk of some of our most precarious people."

Yukon experiencing 'average' flu season

Rates of COVID-19 and influenza are stabilizing this winter, according to the territory's respiratory surveillance report.

The report says viruses are "widespread" at levels declared average for the season and hospitalizations are lower than average. The data is collected from testing in hospitals, 811 calls, and wastewater surveillance in Haines Junction.

"There might be a lot more going around, but there's no indication that that's causing more severity of disease," said Dr. Sudit Ranade, the Yukon's chief medical officer.

Ranade said while it's important to take precautions against viruses, a balance needs to be struck because isolation can become a health risk factor in itself.

"It's really, really important that we not become socially isolated," Ranade said.

Taking necessary risks can be balanced with precautions like optimally managing chronic illnesses, keeping vaccines up to date, paying attention to overall physical health and masking when it's appropriate, he said.

Staying safe 'can be really uncomfortable'

For people with chronic illnesses, fighting for these precautions gets more difficult as most people accept occasional illness as an inevitability.

"[There is] a lot of putting up boundaries with folks, which can be really uncomfortable," Rathlin said. "It's very difficult to exist in space where other people don't have the same safety concerns as you."

Rathlin said small gestures can go a long way, like remembering to include people who are disabled in activities and even offering to wear a mask.

"It's a kindness, and it shows we care about their life, too," Rathlin said.