Holiday season x Covid/Flu season
As the flu season approaches and COVID cases continue to skyrocket, everyone is frantically wondering; “Is holiday season cancelled?” As of today pediatric flu cases are still in the minimal range, according to Michigan’s Flu Focus weekly influenza reports. However, through the previous year there have been 194 pediatric flu deaths. Ms. Carrie Conn , district nurse says that these cases are still in minimal range because we are still at the beginning of the flu season.
November has officially started, cold weather, falling leaves, holiday season is officially in set. With that, people are worried . Has Covid/flu season ruined our 2020 holiday season? The answer is no. Well not really. As Conn says,”Avoid large crowd gatherings where social distancing is difficult to maintain. This would include large indoor gatherings. Because we live in a cold climate during the holiday season, gatherings are usually inside.” The tree lighting ritual for downtown Detroit has officially been cancelled, however there are going to be many drive by light shows to look forward too and are COVID/flu safe.
“The holiday seasons typically include large gatherings of families and friends, crowded arties, and travel that may put people at increased risk for COVID-19 because of the increase of spread in these situations,” says Conn when asked about how the holiday season will affect the current flu and Covid situation. As of now we are still at very high risk for community spread of Covid, with rising cases everyday. The Wayne county is currently holding a positivity rate of 8% which means there are high amounts of Covid being spread through our community.
Through previous years this topic wasn’t much of an issue. However, tables have definitely been turned and now we have to deal with everything in the moment. While before we did have to worry about the Flu spreading , big gatherings were an issue. Individuals at the time would simply just stay home if they had the flu,with Covid you don’t necessarily always know you have it. Which is why everyone is advised to steer clear of big gatherings.
After being asked if with all the precautions that are being taken , will it help decrease the spread of either viruses?, Conn answers, ” Absolutely!! Staying home when you have an illness symptoms, wearing masks, staying six feet apart as much as possible, avoiding crowds will definitely help decrease the spread of the flu and other respiratory illnesses.” If we follow these precautions it will be shown by the decreased spread of the virus. Conn also points out that,” I believe each person and each family needs to make very mindful decisions of how they will celebrate this holiday season. They need to think through how they can help prevent the spread of Covid-19 by only having small-indoor gatherings, wearing masks, staying six feet apart from each other, and keeping these gatherings at a shorter length of time. Each individual needs to think through how their decisions could hurt or help others.”
With that said, we might not get the holiday season we are used to, but there are still many activities that you can take part of without risking your health or anyone else’s. Activities such as drive by light shows, group zoom movie nights, and small family/friend gatherings. If you are going to take part in activities that might put you at a risk try to maintain our basic precautions wearing a mask, social distancing,etc… However you choose your holidays, remember to stay safe.
