Monday, January 14, 2013
Statistics released from the state Department of Health show flu cases continue to rise locally and across Pennsylvania.
The number of flu cases in the Bucks-Montgomery County area and throughout Pennsylvania spiked in early January as health officials continue to deal with one of the worst flu outbreaks in years. Flu season is so bad this year that Allmed Comprehensive Care Center in Bensalem has implemented stricter protocols for patients that arrive at the urgent care clinic with flu-like symptoms. "We are separating them in the waiting room and asking those who come in with symptoms to wear masks," said Robert Baca, an administrator at the care center. "Last Saturday I saw 30 people come in with symptoms over a four hour period." The state reported there were 18 influenza-related deaths the first week of January, bringing to 22 the total number of flu-…
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Influenza activity is widespread in the Philadelphia region and throughout most of the country, and is likely to continue for weeks.
- GOVERNMENT
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Sunday, January 13
After last year's mildest flu season on record, influenza has returned with a vengeance. A "moderately severe outbreak" of "old-fashioned influenza" is filling emergency rooms across the region and the country. According to Dr. William Schaffner, Chair of the Department of Preventative Medicine at Vanderbilt University, this year's influenza outbreak began on the East Coast early this year, in November, and quickly spread westward. The Philadelphia region, along with other East Coast metropolitan areas, "is having a harder time" with the flu than many other parts of the country, Schaffner said in an interview with the Huffington Post. At Lehigh Valley Hospital, medical officials opened a "flu tent" outside the emergency room to handle the …
Friday, December 14, 2012
Flu cases in Pennsylvania have gone from sporadic to widespread, state health officials warn.
- LOCAL CONNECTIONS
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Friday, December 14, 2012
The Department of Health says influenza activity has risen significantly across Pennsylvania since Thanksgiving. The Department of Health is reporting flu activity has increased from sporadic to widespread throughout the state, meaning at least half of the state’s regions are experiencing outbreaks of influenza or increases in influenza-like illness. The flu has appeared earlier this year than in most flu seasons, as widespread activity usually is not seen until January. The number of cases reported to the department more than doubled in the past week. “If you decided to wait, now is the perfect time to get vaccinated against the flu,” Acting Secretary of Health Michael Wolf said. “Ensuring that you and your family get vaccinated will …
