Cold and flu season has arrived early in Waterloo-Wellington. The peak period is usually between November and April, but cases are already popping up across the community. The Region of Waterloo’s Respiratory Illness Dashboard, which was last updated on Sept. 26, showed a weekly average of 1.3 patients had been hospitalized for the flu. For COVID-19, the average was 5.1. According to the dashboard for Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, the most recent data showed an average of 0.04 flu patients per week and 0.70 COVID-19 illnesses as of Sept. 26. Neither have seen any cases of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) during that same time period. Hospitalizations, it must be noted, reflect only the most severe cases. As many people won’t report milder symptoms, it is nearly impossible to determine the true number of illnesses throughout Waterloo-Wellington. “Until we start getting more data with more cases and we know a little bit more,” said David Aoki, Waterloo Region’s director of infectious diseases and chief nursing officer. “It’s still very early. And there’s nothing to indicate that this year is going to be anything worse than what we’ve seen in the past.” Vaccine availability Free flu and COVID-19 vaccines will be widely available soon. “At the Region of Waterloo, we’re starting to offer our clinics for high-risk people starting next week,” said Aoki. “Then we’ll have our public clinics during the week of Oct. 26.” Appointments with public health can be booked online. Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health will start rolling out their vaccine clinics on Oct. 13. Appointments can be booked by telephone or through public health’s online portal. Pharmacies also offer vaccines. While some accept walk-ins, others, due to the limited availability of the shots, may require pre-booked appointments. Connie Phillion, a pharmacist at the Doon Mills Guardian Pharmacy, said she expects flu shots to arrive sometime between Oct. 13 and Oct. 26. Only then can she start booking appointments for anyone considered high-risk, including older adults and those with underlying health conditions. Preventing illness is just one reason to get vaccinated. Another is that it protects everyone else around you. “For those of you who do get sick, don’t go out and spread it to others,” advised Dr. Nicola Mercer, the medical officer of health for Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph. “Try and stay home, get well. We can all spread our germs to other people and very vulnerable people. If we have a cough, cold, sniffles, we don’t know what it is.”
