'The flu is our biggest concern,' says Renfrew's top doctor
Heading into a busy and social holiday period, Renfrew County's top doctor says despite a triple threat of infectious diseases spreading, the flu is his new top priority.
"It's much more important to get a flu shot right now," says Dr. Robert Cushman, the county's acting medical officer of health.
"If you're someone who's well vaccinated against COVID and with the lull in COVID activity right now, the flu between now and New Year's Day is our biggest concern."
The acknowledgement comes shortly after Cushman made a call on the province to reinstate a mask mandate.
"I had real concerns that we were going to jeopardize Christmas, the holiday season, the economy, the fun we have," Cushman tells CTV News.
"The real concern is the flu (now), and of course our flu shot rate is very low. We haven't seen the likes of the flu since 2018."
Until recently, Cushman's concern for much of November was a labelled ‘tripledemic’ of COVID, the flu, and RSV, which led to renewed calls for masking.
"Let's do it for 10 to 14 days so we don't jeopardize the holiday season," he said.
"If we decided to mask 10 days ago, maybe we could have called it off within the next three or four days."
Since the tripledemic scare, Cushman says case counts have plateaued, relaxing his calls for more aggressive masking.
"It looks like we've dodged a bullet more so by good fortune than by any measures on our part."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.