Despite the clear days and the comfortable weather in recent days, the winter sickness is in full swing, and hospitals across the country are reporting a record occupancy of more than 100% in the internal wards and children’s wards in most hospitals in the country. The main reasons for hospitalizations are winter sickness, flu and respiratory diseases.
A recent report published by the Ministry of Health on “Monitoring Morbidity from Respiratory Viruses”, which refers, among other things, to the flu, updates that as of January 2023, more than 1.6 million people have been vaccinated against the seasonal flu at the health insurance funds.
However, the report indicates a decrease in the percentage of flu vaccination among the general population: 17.6%, compared to 18.8% in the corresponding period last year. There is also a noticeable downward trend in the percentage of flu vaccinations among the older population aged 65 and over: 58% were vaccinated compared to 60.2% in the same period last year – a drop of more than 3%.
The report also shows that last week there was an increase in the rate of positive samples for the flu. According to the data, 462 positive cases for the influenza virus were detected among hospitalized patients. Most of the influenza viruses identified in hospitalized patients are type A. A trend of increasing influenza activity is also evident at the global level.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), influenza continues to be high at the global level and the H3N2/A subtype influenza virus is the most dominant.
Prof. Avishai Ellis, chairman of the Internal Medicine Association and director of the Internal Medicine Department at Beilinson Hospital, notes that “the workloads in the wards and the latest hospitalization data indicate a severe winter illness, flu and respiratory diseases. The flu vaccine is the most effective means of maintaining health and preventing serious illness and complications that may result in hospitalization.”