H1N1 update from Sault Area Hospital

The following update on the H1N1 situation at Sault Area Hospital was issued today by Mario A. Paluzzi, SAH's director of communications and public affairs, responding to a request from SooToday.com for more detailed statistics about local effects of the pandemic.

************************* - Total number of current admissions with ILI (influenza-like illness) symptoms = 8

- Total number of confirmed H1N1 patients currently admitted (part of the overall 8) = 3

Please note that this reflects the number currently in the hospital, including both those that may have been admitted today and those admitted at a previous time.

- Total number of confirmed admitted cases since October 16 (date of first confirmed admitted case this fall, and what we are using as our "onset date" for the surge) = 30

As was the case with the admitted numbers above, this represents the total who have been confirmed to date, including those who have already been discharged.

In fact, in many cases, patients had improved and were discharged before the lab results confirmed the H1N1 diagnosis.

At this time last week (Nov. 18), we had a total of 10 admitted patients with ILI symptoms, four of whom were confirmed H1N1 cases.

The total number of confirmed H1N1 cases since October 16 at that time was 28, meaning that there have been two more cases confirmed in the intervening week.

This apparent downward trend is also reflected in the ED, where the percentage of patients presenting with ILI symptoms seems to have stabilized around 12 - 14 percent in the last week.

This compares with 30 percent at the highet of the surge two weeks ago.

As a result of this apparent stablization with respect to the H1N1 situation, the visitor restrictions (one person per patient) have been lifted in the ER and other parts of the hospital with the exception of 2Y (General site) where no visitors are currently being allowed to help control an MRSA outbreak.

However, it is important to remember that this situation can change quickly at any time and continued vigilance should be exercised.

Residents are encouraged to keep practising good hand hygiene, get their vaccinations and remain home when experiencing flu-like symptoms.

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