Flu admissions at Stollery Children's Hospital are climbing as Alberta crosses epidemic threshold

Flu admissions are rising at Stollery Children's Hospital as Alberta's flu positivity rate crossed the 6 per cent epidemic threshold two weeks ago—significantly higher than Canada's rate of 3.7 per cent.

Dr. Shazma Mithani, an emergency physician at both Royal Alexandra Hospital and Stollery, said emergency departments across the city are seeing flu in all age groups. Some children require admission to hospital; others are sent home with instructions to return if symptoms worsen. Children with complex medical conditions—diabetes, COPD, asthma, or immunocompromised states from illness, chemotherapy, or medication—face higher risk of severe illness.

This year's flu vaccine is a "really good match" for the circulating virus based on data from the southern hemisphere, Mithani said. But Alberta's vaccination rates remain below the 80-85 per cent threshold needed for herd immunity. "Poor," is how Mithani described the province's uptake. "I encourage everybody to get vaccinated. That is so important," she told the Edmonton Journal.

Stollery serves Northern Alberta and parts of the Northwest Territories and British Columbia. On admission, children receive respiratory swabs for flu, COVID, and RSV. Some are infected with more than one virus simultaneously, all of which receive isolation precautions based on the illness type.

The first severe lab-verified influenza A case requiring Royal Alexandra admission arrived in early September—contracted in August. That patient was otherwise healthy, suggesting the virus can strike across demographics. In 2025, Canada's national positivity rate didn't cross the epidemic threshold until week 46, November 21. This year's early surge puts Alberta weeks ahead of last year's timeline.