Postpone Travel if Sick, Aglukkaq Says
Source: CBC News
Posted: 10/28/09 12:16PM
Filed Under: Travel
Canadians who feel ill should defer their travel plans until they're better, Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq suggested on Wednesday.
The federal government encouraged travel companies to easily allow Canadians to rebook if they are ill.
The Public Health Agency of Canada released new infection control guidelines Wednesday for passengers of planes, trains, ferries and intercity buses.
The guidelines include advice on:
How to deal with sick passengers and crew.
Availability of handwashing for passengers.
Regular cleaning of public areas in stations and vehicles.
In most parts of the country, H1N1 flu activity is increasing, Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. David Butler-Jones, told reporters on Wednesday.
Flu activity, vaccine interest up
Since April, there have been 1,600 hospitalizations for H1N1 infections in Canada, including 300 people admitted to intensive care units.
The vaccine remains the best weapon in the fight against swine flu, Butler-Jones said.
By the end of the week, about six million doses of the H1N1 vaccine will have been shipped, Aglukkaq said. Millions more are on the way.
Toll-free health lines and websites offering details about H1N1 vaccine clinics have also been busy. Nova Scotia's 811 phone line, for example, was set up to handle a maximum of 400 calls a day but received 2,900 calls on Tuesday.
The federal flu site is getting 60,000 hits per second, Butler-Jones said, noting "there is a lot of interest."
Flu activity is on the rise in parts of Canada, with increased visits to pediatric emergency rooms and more students off from school.
At Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children, more children have visited in the last few days with flu symptoms, Anne Matlow, the director of the hospital's infection prevention and control program, said Wednesday.
The hospital has had twice the regular number of patients coming in at night and officials believe the flu season is at its height.
Likewise at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, hospital officials said two-thirds of the patients arriving at its emergency department had symptoms of influenza-like illness and had to be isolated from other emergency room patients.
In response, CHEO has added more staff, expanded its emergency department and restricted visiting hours.
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