Pima County Health DepartmentFlu Surveillance 2009Week 38, Sept 20 – Sept 26, 2009 The novel H1N1 virus (also known as swine flu) is expected to cause widespread mild flu illness in the fall of 2009. Although this flu does not typically cause severe illness, it is still important to track local flu activity to help our medical providers respond quickly to the health needs of the community. To prepare for increased flu activity in Pima County due to the novel H1N1 virus, the Pima County Health Department has developed an extensive surveillance system to track flu-related indicators.
This includes local information from: o Clinics – percent of patient visits with flu-like illness.o Hospitals - percent of patient visits with flu-like illness.o Pharmacies – number of over-the counter flu-related medications sold.o Laboratories – number of positive flu tests reported to the state or county health department. *This only captures a limited number of diagnosed flu cases since medical providers are not required to report a rapid test that may be done in their office.o Vital Records – number of pneumonia or flu-related deaths. This is part of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ongoing project for 122 cities in the US.o Schools – percent of children absent or sent home from school with flu-like illness.Every week, information is reviewed for changes in flu-related activity from week-to-week, as well as changes from the past month and previous year(s) when available. For Week 38, September 20 – 26, 2009:• Hospitals showed an increase in patients with flu-like symptoms compared to the previous week and the previous 4 weeks.• Out-patient clinics reported an increase in the percentage of patients with flu-like illness.• Sales for over-the counter medications increased slightly compared to week 37, and compared to previous 4 weeks.• The number of positive flu tests increased this week and compared to the previous 4 weeks.• Pneumonia and Flu deaths are staying in the expected range for this time period compared to data from 2007 and 2008.• Overall, students absent or sent home with flu-like symptoms are even with figures from 2007 and 2008, and approximately the same number of students were absent during Week 38 compared to the previous week. During this week 4 schools called with reports of increased student absenteeism with mild flu-like symptoms. Summary: Overall, we are seeing evidence of increasing mild illness in Pima County.
[ Desert Springs Academy ]
UPDATE
