How to avoid the flu this Christmas in Limerick as cases surge - Dr Catherine Conlon

Dr Catherine Conlon examines how to socialise without risking infection and ruining the festive season...

FLU cases are surging, expected to peak in Christmas week and the New Year, adding a further impossible burden to already buckling health services and exhausted staff. Already, there are almost 3,000 cases of flu reported, with more than 500 people hospitalised - and that figure is expected to climb to well over 1,000 in the coming weeks. Tragically, this includes nine deaths, all but one of whom were over 65.h
Health experts outline that in real terms, these numbers mean the equivalent of two large hospitals in a system already hugely challenged by a lack of hospital beds.

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With the Christmas season in full swing, crowded pubs, bars, restaurants, buses, trains and taxis; as well as gatherings in sports venues, community halls and homes; create a perfect storm for the flu virus to spread like wildfire during a much anticipated festive period that provides a bright light in the middle of a dark, cold, damp and very depressing Irish winter.
If you are planning a Christmas of socialising, what can be done to minimise the chances of the festive season being annihilated by flu?

Get the flu vaccine
Consultant in emergency medicine in Beaumont Hospital Dr Peadar Gilligan urges the public, particularly vulnerable people to get the flu vaccine.
If you are coming home for Christmas and planning lots of socialising in town, there is a good chance that a large number of people in any venue are harbouring flu symptoms. Not just any flu bug but a new, highly virulent H3N2 subclade K that is wreaking havoc in its wake.
The flu vaccine is the single most effective way to protect yourself and others from being struck down. While not 100% effective, it significantly lowers your risk of serious illness and complications.
The HSE is urging anyone eligible for the flu vaccine to get it now. This includes all those who are:
-Aged 60 and over
- Aged 2 to 17
- A healthcare worker
- Pregnant
- Living in a nursing home or other long-term health facility
- In regular contact with pigs, poultry or waterfowl
- Someone with a health condition that puts you at higher risk of flu (age 6 months or older)
- Living with someone who has a health condition that puts them at higher risk of flu
- A carer for someone who has a health condition that puts them at higher risk of flu
- Book an appointment with your GP or pharmacy.

Make sure your children are vaccinated
Many parents think that children don’t need a vaccine against flu - “it’s only flu.” It may be “only flu” to many kids but some children do become seriously unwell, needing hospitalisation. Added to that, children are recognised as being major transmitters or flu because they can be contagious for longer (up to 14 days) compared to adults who tend to be infectious for five to seven days. Children often spread germs easily through schools and childcare, shedding the virus even before the symptoms appear and for extended periods after. They are also effective spreaders because of their reduced etiquette around coughing, sneezing and contaminating surfaces with their sticky little fingers. They are frequently kissed by doting relatives and grandparents – adding to the contagion.
Vaccinating children with the nasal vaccine protects them from flu but also protects grandparents and other vulnerable family members from picking it up from them.
Frequent handwashing especially after coughing and sneezing helps. Keeping children at home for at least three to five days after symptoms start and until they are fever free for 48 hours (without medicine) is really important.

Avoid contact with others if any symptoms are showing
When you walk into a bar in the next few weeks, milling with festive partygoers, be on the lookout for symptoms – runny noses, coughing, sneezing and spluttering into pints or cocktails. Avoid them like the plague.
Don’t shake hands with anyone. Be very stingy with your hugs and kisses. If you can socialise outside, do - fresh air and ventilation can help reduce the risk of exposure to viruses. If socialising indoors, open the window to improve airflow and allow the germs to escape.
Wearing a mask can provide an extra layer of protection, especially in crowded indoor spaces.
If you must shake hands, carry a hand sanitizer and use it regularly. Remember the path of germs – nose or throat to hands and from there into your mouth and airways. Surfaces are contaminated too – tables, door handles, bar counters, toilet flushes, taps. Wash your hands and dry them thoroughly after visiting the bathroom. If you are floating down the stairs in a crowded venue, remember all those sweaty palms that have handled that banister before you. Use it to guide your descent and then sanitise (again).

Avoid the bowls of nuts and dips
Never, ever, indulge yourself by dipping your hands into a bowl of nuts and eating them. It is not just the flu virus that lurks in those bowls. If you’re at a house party, think about how many hands may have touched the delicious edibles you are about to indulge in.
If you are the host, make sure there is plenty of hand sanitiser available – in the kitchen and living rooms and especially in the hall beside the front door.
Avoid the mistletoe this year.

Wash your hands and avoid touching your face
Washing your hands is more than a drizzle of water on the tips of your fingers followed by a quick shake. Wash your hands with warm water and soap for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water isn’t available, use an alcohol based sanitiser containing at least 60% alcohol.
Germs easily enter your body through your eyes, nose and mouth. Make a conscious effort to keep your hands away from your face

Immunity boost
While succumbing to influenza can weaken your immunity and make you more prone to bacterial infection, there are measures you can take to boost your immune system and your resilience to infection. While these measures are not a substitute for all the above measures, a healthy immune system helps to fight off infection.
Getting enough sleep and eating a diet full of fruit, vegetables, protein and fibre can support immune function. Drink plenty of fluids so that healthy mucous membranes can provide a primary defence against viruses. Manage stress – a key factor that can compromise the immune response and increase vulnerability to illness.
The Christmas season is in full swing – so unfortunately is a virulent new strain of flu that tends to be more severe than other strains. The figures reflect this with an early rise in flu cases, hospital admissions and deaths.
There are steps you can take to significantly lower your risk of catching flu. By getting a vaccine now from your GP or pharmacy; washing your hands thoroughly and often; and minimising shaking hands, hugging and kissing - especially babies with sticky hands and faces.
If you achieve all that, you can enjoy a social life this year while significantly lowering your risk of catching the flu and spending 10 miserable days in bed - that was my fate last Christmas and I have no intention of having a repeat performance this year.

Dr Catherine Conlon is a senior medical officer with the Department of Public Health, HSE in Cork