Hospital sees 13 verified influenza patients
By Betsy Ryan
Farmer Staff Writer
December to February is peak flu season according to the Center for Disease Control. Flu season can last until May which means that you should not let up on excessive hand washing anytime soon.
According to Mike Curtis, chief administrative officer at the McKenzie County Healthcare Systems, Inc., the hospital saw 13 positive cases of influenza in December. Eleven of those cases were Influenza B and two were Influenza A. Of the positive cases, 11 of them had not received the flu shot this year.
“In general, we are hearing that the flu vaccine is only 30 to 40 percent effective this year,” said Curtis. “Our numbers don’t play that out. The vaccine seems to be more effective in this area, but that is what we are hearing.”
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