Flu season is back, and this year, it could be more serious than ever.
Local health care officials say the coronavirus pandemic isn’t letting up anytime soon, so getting a flu shot this year is especially crucial to keep hospitalizations down and limit cases of COVID-19 guised as seasonal flu.
Eight months into combating the pandemic, health care officials now have to also tackle the annual flu season. More than 194 million flu vaccines will be distributed throughout the country this year — higher than last year’s 174 million, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The increase in available vaccines is part of an effort to encourage people to get a flu shot this year to help offset the number of flu cases on top of COVID-19 cases, the CDC website said.
Dr. David Dunkle, president and CEO of Johnson Memorial Health, cannot predict what this flu season will bring, but he is hopeful added efforts of social distancing and mask-wearing will possibly decrease the number of serious flu illnesses, he said.
“You never know for sure, but studies have definitely shown a decrease in other respiratory illnesses since measures have been put in place to mitigate COVID,” Dunkle said.
Since COVID-19 cases greatly increased starting in March, the tail end of last flu season, the CDC conducted a study that found cases of the flu decreased by almost 76% at the beginning of 2020 compared to the last three years. This was caused by pandemic-related restrictions, such as increased social distancing efforts, masks and canceling large events, according to the study.
Even with the possibility of fewer flu cases, Dunkle emphasized getting a flu shot is more important this year to not overwhelm hospitals, a situation area hospitals are all too familiar with.
Last year, all three restricted visitors in due to an unusually busy flu season. Nearly daily, Franciscan Health Indianapolis ran out of inpatient beds due to the number of flu cases hospital physicians were treating.
Emergency room doctors at Community Hospital South believed it was a hospital record for the number of patients treated for the flu or upper respiratory infections.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that between 6.4 and 9.1 million people had flu illnesses across the U.S. between October and December last year. Between 2,900 and 7,200 people died in that same time period, according to the center’s data.
“Influenza is a deadly virus. Just like COVID, it’s more deadly to the older and at-risk populations,” Dunkle said. “We do not want to overwhelm the health system. At this time, I don’t think we can handle a surge.”
Indiana has been breaking records with new COVID-19 cases climbing to about 1,500 to 2,000 new cases everyday. Johnson Memorial’s COVID unit on Tuesday had one admitted patient with room for seven more, but the hospital is wary of a potential surge soon, Dunkle said.
“As you look at the COVID cases spiking in Indiana, we’re definitely worried. We’re stressing to all of our patients to make sure to get your vaccine,” Dunkle said.
Dr. Christopher Doehring, vice president of medical affairs at Franciscan Health on the southside of Indianapolis, shares the same concerns about a possible surge on top of flu season, which typically brings more patients to the hospital during a normal year, he said. A “double whammy” of flu and COVID-19 patients could potentially impact hospital operations again.
“There is a risk that we’ll see a surge in COVID as well as seeing a spike in the flu,” Doehring said. “We’re already pushed to the limits in the winter with the flu as it is.”
Franciscan is not overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients, but the numbers have doubled in the last two weeks, he said. None of the hospitalized patients are critically ill though, he added.
The hospitals are not doing anything different or specific to prepare for this year’s flu season because many flu season-type restrictions have been in place since March, including limited visitors and asking people to wear masks inside.
Another issue doctors foresee is patients not being able to tell the difference between COVID-19 and the flu on their own. Both are respiratory illnesses with similar symptoms, such as fever, aches, cough, sore throat, congestion and more, Dunkle said. If a person is experiencing any of these symptoms severely, they should be evaluated by a clinician and receive tests for both COVID-19 and influenza, he said.
“I don’t want anyone to panic, but unfortunately the problem is, a lot of symptoms are the same,” Dunkle said. “If you can’t tell, we are testing for both COVID-19 and influenza.”
The main message health care officials want to send to the public is to not only get vaccinated but continue social distancing, hand-washing, mask wearing and staying home when sick, Dunkle said.
Doehring warned people should not settle into what he called a “pandemic fatigue,” he said.
“It’s a balancing act. We know what to do. We know what works to stop and slow the spread of this virus. But the things that it requires are exhausting, and to be honest, people get tired of it,” Doehring said. “Even with a vaccine or better treatment, I don’t think we’re going to get away from needing to do those things.”
