November 19, 2009: Deactivation of flu assessment centres

To: Primary care providers

From: Dr. Isra Levy, Medical Officer of Health; Dr. Merrilee Fullerton, President, Academy of Medicine Ottawa

After serving nearly 3,000 Ottawa residents, most flu assessment centres will deactivate their operations at the end of day Friday due to declining demand. The Tungasuvvingat Inuit Community Centre will continue providing flu assessment services to its clients, since flu activity continues to rise among the local Inuit population.

The flu assessment centres were launched to increase primary care capacity, particularly for residents who did not have or could not immediately contact a family physician but who wanted their flu-like symptoms assessed. Now that the surge in flu activity has passed, the supplementary primary care capacity offered by flu assessment centres is no longer deemed necessary, and organizations that hosted flu assessment centres will now resume their usual range of health services for their own client population.

Although influenza-like illness activity is above normal for this time of year, indicators show declining activity in Ottawa. The number of people going to hospital emergency departments in Ottawa who screen positive for ILI has declined from late October highs of 20 to 40 per cent to 7 to 12 per cent in the current week. The number of schools reporting respiratory-related absenteeism of greater than 10 per cent school-wide has also declined steadily in recent weeks.

Because the H1N1 flu virus continues to circulate in the community, we call on you to continue providing timely treatment to your own patients who may present with flu-like symptoms. The community will now rely on doctors’ offices, walk-in clinics and health centres to provide flu assessment and treatment to:

• People whose symptoms are worsening quickly
• People who are at risk of developing flu-related complications: children under 5 years, especially those under 2; seniors over 65 years; pregnant women; and people who have a cardiac disease, chronic pulmonary disease, diabetes, cancer, weakened immune systems, renal disease, anemia or morbid obesity

The former should seek immediate medical attention, whereas the latter should see a primary care provider within 48 hours of showing flu symptoms, since early treatment with antivirals is more effective should you deem it beneficial. Pharmacies continue to be supplied with oseltamivir (Tamiflu) to provide free of charge to patients who present with a prescription for treatment.

Hospital emergency departments remain the destination for people whose symptoms become severe – such as shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, lips turning blue, extreme weakness or passing out.

For more information on H1N1, visit ottawa.ca/health or contact the Ottawa Public Health Information Line at 613-580-6744.