Working Together to Navigate Viral Season

By Ericka Hayes, MD

Senior Medical Director of Infection Prevention, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

The winter season is always very busy for pediatric healthcare organizations due to a surge in admissions and outpatient visits for respiratory viral illnesses. Every winter in the United States, about 100,000 children under 5 are hospitalized for influenza or respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). (That’s enough to fill Lincoln Financial Field 1.5 times over.) Additionally, there are 2.2 million pediatric outpatient visits for respiratory viral illnesses each winter. I’ve asked Dr. Ericka Hayes, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia 's Senior Medical Director of Infection Prevention, to share how CHOP navigates this very busy and critical time. – Madeline

Pediatric hospitals operate at maximum capacity during winter respiratory virus season, so our teams work together to ensure we can continue to provide excellent care to the many patients who need it. Children under 2 are at the highest risk for severe illness requiring hospitalization with influenza and RSV.

Our top priority is keeping staff, patients and visitors safe. The COVID-19 pandemic reinforced the value of masking in preventing viral transmission, and it’s a tool that we use now during our peak respiratory season. We use a variety of data to help us decide when to implement masking and other protective measures in different areas. This data includes percent positivity of viral testing in our region for influenza, RSV and COVID-19; acute illness call-outs by staff; clusters and outbreaks of viral infections across our sites; and patient volumes.?

The CHOP Care Network also uses data to prepare for viral season by preemptively adjusting staffing, supplies and precautions. Ahead of this year’s viral season, for example, the Care Network’s preventive care included flu and COVID-19 vaccine clinics and the administration of Beyfortus (nirsevimab), a preventive RSV?treatment, to eligible infants and young children.

Navigating viral season is absolutely a collaborative effort. The staff who work in our check-in areas and on our triage teams reinforce masking for patients and visitors with respiratory symptoms. Our healthcare providers ensure that patients are cared for in a way that decreases the chance of viral transmission. And our Care Network teams are on the front lines at our locations throughout the region, helping to predict viral trends and acting as a first line of response. We also require influenza vaccination for our healthcare workers each year and require staff to stay home when they are sick.

Everyone in our community has a role to play in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses. The key steps are staying home when ill, masking if you have respiratory symptoms, practicing respiratory etiquette (including excellent hand hygiene, sneezing/coughing into a tissue or your elbow/upper arm, and masking appropriately), and getting vaccines to prevent COVID-19, influenza and RSV as appropriate.

If we all follow these preventive measures, we can help to reduce the spread of viral illnesses this winter. Fewer viruses mean fewer missed days of school and work – and more time to devote to the activities and the people that bring us joy.

?Ericka

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