Flu activity is rising across Southeastern Indiana, and local health officials say the region is likely heading into a challenging stretch as winter respiratory illnesses continue to circulate.
Health leaders in Ripley, Franklin and Decatur counties report increasing flu cases, with emergency rooms and clinics seeing heavier demand in recent weeks. Other respiratory viruses, including COVID-19 and RSV, are also present, though trends vary by county.
In Ripley and Franklin counties, health officer Dr. David Welsh said emergency departments are already under strain.
“The ER other similar units are getting overwhelmed with respiratory issues,” Welsh said.
He noted that hospitals in the area have not implemented visitor restrictions at this time, but urged residents to use common sense as social gatherings increase during the winter months.
“If someone’s going sick, please don’t don’t take your illness to the party,” Welsh said.
Welsh emphasized caution when visiting people with serious underlying medical conditions, including those undergoing chemotherapy or living with heart or lung disease, and said masking can be an important precaution in those situations.
“There’s still flu shots available and we haven’t hit the peak season yet,” he said.
In Decatur County, Sean Durbin, executive director of the Decatur County Health Department, said flu activity picked up quickly after a slow start to the season.
“We started off kind of slow, but we are seeing rapidly increasing cases, both locally and all over the state at this point,” Durbin said.
He said officials are anticipating a more difficult season than usual, citing the strain of influenza circulating this year and how it compares to the vaccine formulation.
“We anticipate a worse than normal flu season for a couple of reasons,” Durbin said. “We are seeing a variant of the A influenza virus this year and the influenza vaccine that was prepared for the season is not well suited to the actual virus that we’re seeing this year.”
Despite that mismatch, Durbin stressed that vaccination still plays an important role in reducing the severity of illness.
“It does reduce the risk of serious illness hospitalization and death,” he said.
Durbin also encouraged residents to focus on practical prevention steps at home, particularly when someone in a household is sick, including improving indoor air circulation during the winter months.
“We want to get as much fresh air into your house as you possibly can,” he said.
Durbin said his department uses specific symptoms as a guide. “So we define the influenza like illnesses as a fever of 100 degrees and cough and sore throat,” he said. He added that people should avoid others until “your symptoms have subsided and you are fever free for at least 24 hours without taking fever reducing medication.”
On COVID-19, Durbin said Decatur County is not currently seeing a significant increase.
“We’re not seeing any major increases in COVID right now,” he said.
Health officials across the region say flu season has not yet reached its peak, which typically occurs later in the winter, and continue to urge residents to take basic precautions to protect themselves and those around them.
