A weekly report from Sciensano shows that the number of flu cases in our country increased sharply in the second week of January. About 77,000 Belgians visited their GP last week with flu-like complaints. We are therefore approaching the peak of previous years and code orange for infectious diseases now applies in our country. It advises people to wear a face mask in busy places and in healthcare.
The number of patients who had to go to hospital for serious acute respiratory infections also rose to more than 1,600 across the country in the first week of the new year. Analysis shows that a large part of these admissions is due to flu.
“Hopefully over soon”
The reason for the UZA to take measures “to protect weak patients”, explains Guy Hans, medical director of the hospital in Edegem. “We are not introducing an obligation, but we strongly recommend wearing a face mask. If you walk in the hallway, you are not obliged to do so. If you come into close contact with a (weakened) patient, we ask you to put it on. We ask people who are symptomatic to wear a face mask at all times.”
In addition, the hospital also asks that you put on a face mask during consultations and keep a distance of two meters in, among other things, the waiting rooms. Measures that we have not seen since the corona pandemic. “We hope that by taking these measures we can quickly limit the peak in influenza numbers. Hopefully it will be over after a few weeks.”
No pressure on care
The UZA immediately reassures that care is not jeopardized despite the large influx of patients. Procedures or admissions should not be postponed.
