As cases of respiratory illnesses in Toronto continue to rise, health experts warn of an increased risk in our schools.
Toronto Public Health says it recorded over 570 cases of influenza and a nearly 11 per cent COVID-19 positivity rate in the second week of January.
“Schools in general mimic what’s going on in the community and we are certainly seeing that this is the height of our respiratory illness season – COVID, flu and RSV are all at high levels in general,” Dr. Vinita Dubey, Toronto’s Associate Medical Officer of Health, tells CityNews.
“COVID has been around since the fall and is continuing at high levels, flu is continuing to go up so it might get worse, RSV thankfully seems to be on the downward trend.”
The city’s wastewater data shows high activity levels of COVID, RSV and influenza A as of January 14.
“Part of the rise in these viruses is because it’s colder, we’re spending more time indoors and so that also encourages the viruses to spread more at this time of year,” says Dr. Dubey.
Earlier this week, Toronto Public Health issued a reminder for parents and students to help limit the spread of respiratory infections in schools.
“If we’re sick it’s better to stay home than go into the classroom and risk infecting others, washing our hands as often as we can, and if we have to cough or sneeze to do it into our sleeve or elbow.”
Dr. Dubey says wearing a mask and staying up to date on your vaccines are among some of the best ways to protect yourself and those most vulnerable this season.
“New this year is we have an RSV immunization program for infants. This has been really tremendous and has really played a role as to why our younger infants are better protected against RSV this year,” she says.
Dr. Dubey says there are still vaccines for COVID and flu still available. You can reach out to your local pharmacy or healthcare provider for more information.
