[ad_1]
Roanoke, Va. (WDJ) – It’s unclear what Covid-19 will hold for us as we head into fall and winter, but there are some hopeful signs.
During her Virtual Public Health Update on Tuesday morning, Dr. Cynthia Morrow with the Roanoke City-Allegany Health Districts said that overall covid activity in our region and state appears to be slowing.
She admits the test data is too unreliable to get the whole big picture because of testing at home. But all control data sets indicate a slowdown in activity, with the exception of local hospitals, which saw a slight increase over the past week.
That said, Dr. Morrow always reminds us to be humble when it comes to this virus. Predicting exactly what will do is a challenge for public health leaders.
“Between the vaccine dose that we all hope for, using Omron and the new booster injection that covers the first strain, and using a lot of natural immunity, we’re definitely hoping that we’ll get it.” The worst is still behind us,” Morrow said. But we expect Covid-19 activity to continue to fluctuate.
Dr. Morrow said there are currently no new observable differences.
As for the flu, Dr. Morrow said the health district will begin counting flu victims in early October. She said it’s too early to predict what the season will hold. That said, now is the perfect time for vaccinations.
“And I certainly encourage anyone concerned about the upcoming flu season to get vaccinated. This is the right time to vaccinate,” she said. “September and October are the months we want everyone to be properly vaccinated to stay well. So if you haven’t gotten your flu shot yet, I definitely encourage you to get it.”
Covid mitigation strategies seem to have helped curb flu activity in the past two years. Currently, Morrow said there is some flu activity, but it is mostly low level. Most flu seasons peak in January and February.
Copyright 2022 WDBJ. all rights reserved.
[ad_2]
Source link
