Doctors urge caution as holidays lead to surge in ‘tripledemia’ cases

MIAMI – Flu cases are increasing in Florida and across the country as the holiday travel season begins.

Dr. Hany Atallah, chief medical officer at Jackson Memorial Hospital, said the CDC’s “tripledemic” scenario is starting to play out at his hospital, with severe RSV and flu activity, moderate COVID numbers and overlapping peaks.

“What is most worrying is the severity of certain diseases,” Atallah said. “And we also see some patients coming in with more than one viral infection, so they may have RSV and the flu, for example. We are constantly trying to follow the science and encourage people to get vaccinated.

It’s something that greatly frustrates Dr. David Farcy, who runs the emergency department at Mount Sinai Medical Center.

“When I see people dying from a preventable disease, that vaccination would have prevented, yes, absolutely,” he said. “We are only at the beginning of the season. We were pretty flat.

But that line is starting to bend, as more patients report respiratory illnesses.

And as people gather for the upcoming holidays, Farcy only expects more patients, which isn’t necessarily the case.

“We have a vaccine, guys, completely safe, that protects us,” he said. “I think right now it’s time for people to trust the science and get vaccinated.”