Article content

Flu season is in full swing in Ottawa, with at least one death and ongoing outbreaks at long-term care homes attributed to it.

As of Tuesday, 115 cases of flu had been confirmed in Ottawa, a number that is likely the “tip of the iceberg,” said Robin Taylor, associated medical officer of health with Ottawa Public Health.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or 'The tip of the iceberg': One death confirmed as flu season hits Ottawa in full force Back to video

Acute care centres, including hospital emergency rooms, have been seeing increasing numbers of patients coming in with flu symptoms, she said. Flu season started earlier in Ottawa this year than last when there was very little flu in Ottawa over the holidays.

The strain of flu that is prevalent in the province this year — H3N2 — tends to affect older people and cause more outbreaks in long-term care homes, said Taylor, which is why public health officials are watching institutions where the elderly live closely.

“They are a very vulnerable population.”

As of this week, there were six confirmed cases of influenza A outbreaks at long-term care residences in the city.