Grey Bruce Public Health announces first local flu case of season
November 29, 2024
Grey Bruce Public Health is reporting the area’s first laboratory-confirmed influenza case of the 2024-25 respiratory illness season.
A Grey County resident has tested positive for Influenza A.
The timing of this first confirmed flu case is more in line with the years preceding the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first flu case of last year’s respiratory illness season was confirmed in early October, while the first case of the 2022-23 season was confirmed in late September. The first cases of both the 2018-19 respiratory illness season and the 2019-20 season were confirmed in mid-November.
“Influenza A is a highly-contagious virus that can cause mild to severe illness in individuals,” says Gillian Jordan, manager of public health’s infectious diseases program. “People at higher risk of developing severe complications from the flu include seniors, aged 65 and up, children younger than five years old, and people with certain chronic medical conditions.
“To help curb the spread of the flu, public health strongly urges people to get the flu shot as soon as possible and stay home when they’re sick.”
The Ontario Ministry of Health recommends that all adults and children, six months of age and older, get the updated flu vaccine each fall as the influenza virus changes frequently. The flu shot takes about two weeks to take full effect.
In addition, the ministry recommends that all individuals, six months of age and older, receive the KP.2-containing COVID-19 vaccine this fall.
People can get the flu shot and the latest COVID-19 vaccine at the same time.
You can receive this season’s flu shot and COVID-19 vaccine from your primary care provider or at a participating pharmacy.
Along with getting vaccinated, residents can protect themselves, their family members, and communities from respiratory illnesses by staying home when they’re sick, cleaning their hands and disinfecting high-touch surfaces frequently, and practising coughing and sneezing etiquette.
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