THERE has been a spate of influenza cases across the district over the past two weeks.
Medical clinics have treated an increased number of patients and a number of people have been hospitalised.
District residents and visitors are being advised to make an appointment to see a doctor if influenza symptoms persist and to take precautions to minimise the chance of spreading the disease.
Kerang District Health chief executive officer, Robert Jarman said that there had been an increase in hospital patient admissions with influenza during the last couple of weeks.
Doctors at Cohuna and Kerang have also seen more patients presenting with symptoms and and samples have been sent for pathology analysis.
Kerang Medical Clinic practice manager, Kate Matthews said that the clinic has had nine confirmed diagnoses of influenza A and B in the past week alone, and a spokesperson for the Ochre Medical Clinic at Cohuna also confirmed an increase in confirmed cases.
Data from the Department of Health and Human Services reveals that Winter seasonal influenza rates for Victoria are up 81 per cent from last year.
Symptoms include chills, shivering, fever, temperatures above 38 degrees, headache, muscle aches and pains, sore throat, stuffy or runny nose, sneezing, a dry cough, fatigue, and trouble breathing.
“We would encourage people who aren’t feeling well to see their doctor as soon as possible,” Mr Jarman said.
The likelihood of contracting influenza can be reduced by following a few simple guidelines. First of all, don’t under-estimate the power of washing your hands thoroughly. Use soap and scrub between fingers, backs of hands, and up to the wrists to reduce the chances of contracting the virus.
Secondly, when coughing or sneezing, make sure you do it into your hands or arms and wash hands right away. Influenza is an air-borne disease meaning that another person coughing or sneezing nearby can transmit the disease.
Other tips include not sharing personal items like drink bottles and cups, cleaning surfaces that may have been coughed on, avoiding those with the symptoms, not touching your face, and of course, getting the flu vaccine. The vaccine is available from your GP and is free for the over-65 and chronically ill.
Those experiencing symptoms should see their GP straight away and stay at home to avoid contact with others. Residents are advised to visit the doctor in the first instance rather than attend at the hospital for treatment as there are hospital patients with weakened immunity who may become exposed to the virus.
“The earlier they can see their GP, they can receive antibiotics and restrict the spread of the disease. If you have the ‘flu, you should stay home away from other people until it passes,” Mr Jarman said.
