Seattle doctor discusses increase in respiratory illnesses, new COVID-19 variant JN. 1

Well after returning from the holidays, health systems saw an uptick in respiratory illnesses including COVID-19, flu and RSV. It's a big concern and experts say cases could continue trending upward. Joining us this morning is Dr. Kerry Jenner, a pediatrician with Virginia Mason Franciscan Health. Thank you for joining us this morning. How much of an increase have we seen in cases in recent weeks and why do you expect cases to continue going upward? Yeah we're definitely in the middle of respiratory illness season, the kind of the triple-demic that people talk about. We're seeing flu, RSV and COVID. We're above average for flu and RSV cases. COVID levels are a little lower than last year but they're still there and COVID is still the leading cause of hospitalization for respiratory illnesses right now. And Dr. Jenner, can you talk about how this uptick in cases is impacting the health system? Well we're definitely busy and my pediatric office there's definitely a lot of kids coughing, a little hard to get hard to get in. So often there's a good option is to maybe seek going to an urgent care or Virginia Mason Franciscan Health has a virtual urgent care where you don't have to leave home and can you know seek care from the comfort of your own home and that way it makes less crowding in the ERs and urgent cares. Doctor, before we talk about this new variant that's circulating, you and I were just talking during the commercial break about shots. You know here we are a couple of weeks into the winter months. Is it too late for people to get a flu shot or maybe that updated COVID booster if they haven't already? No, there's still time to get it. Flu often in Washington continues through April or May so it's not too late to get your flu shot. It gives you good protection and remember these shots aren't 100% effective but they're really good at preventing severe illness and hospitalization and the COVID booster, the updated COVID vaccine is still not too late to get. It really gives good protection, reminds your body how to fight off COVID. It has the most recent one of the Omicron variants in it so it's not too late. If you haven't been vaccinated that's one of the best things you can do to prevent getting sick. And I talked about that new COVID variant a moment ago. It's called JN1. Can you tell us a little bit more about that variant and how it might differ from some of the previous variants? Yeah, so JN1 is an offshoot of Omicron. It seems to be more transmissible meaning it spreads quicker but the good news it doesn't seem to cause more severe disease but it is definitely an easy spreader and the good news is that the current vaccine seems to give some protection against JN1. Also the COVID testing that you see there, it's still going to be picked up on COVID tests and then the COVID treatments such as Paxlovid still seem to be effective against the JN1 variant. So we're lucky it hasn't shifted enough that our current protections vaccination is still going to help you prevent getting JN1. Dr. Jenner, just moments ago you mentioned that Virginia Mason does offer virtual care from home. I know I've used telehealth services and things like that myself at home but I've always had a hard time wondering whether or not my illness was crucial enough to see a doctor in person or or to seek care from home. So can you kind of break it down for us? How do we know when we should just seek care from home or when is it a good time to go to the hospital? Yeah, so really with these respiratory illnesses, really you're breathing. If you're breathing a lot faster and harder than normal, you feel like you can't catch your breath or feeling chest heaviness, that would be a good indication to go into urgent care or the emergency room to get seen or if you're really dehydrated, you're vomiting and can't keep fluids down, that would be another reason to go in. But if you're having kind of minor symptoms like body aches, fevers, coughing but still breathing okay, that would be a good time to maybe seek virtual care to get some recommendations and they can also work with you to see if you need a higher level of care. I know that this next question might face some resistance from some of our viewers that are watching but you know obviously we're not seeing the levels of sickness that we saw during the crux of the pandemic but are there certain times when people should maybe consider putting on a mask? Yes, it is not popular. However, if you're going to a big concert, let's say you know you're at Climate Pledge Arena at a big concert, I would wear a mask. Anytime you're around lots of people in a crowded environment, it is a good idea such as an airport. You know when you're checking in, standing in those TSA lines, I would recommend wearing a mask but at home or just you know around smaller numbers of people, I don't think it's needed but those kind of large group settings, I would recommend wearing a mask. I would imagine that the good old adages of covering your mouth when you cough and sneeze and washing your hands using hand sanitizer are pretty much the big go-tos at this point, right? Yeah, so besides vaccination, so vaccination and washing your hands, those two things can prevent a lot of respiratory illness. I know it sounds cliche but washing your hands really does help. All the surfaces we touch, we touch our eyes, our nose, our mouth. Really important to keep up with that and again not too late to get your flu and COVID vaccine. So much important information. Dr. Jenner, thank you so much for your time this morning. We appreciate it. Yeah, absolutely. Thank you. Stay healthy. All right, yeah, I mean it goes back to some of those basics that you know I think we tend to forget about sometimes but particularly are very important during the winter months when you know most of us kind of come to tend to come indoors to hang out with family members and friends with the holidays and that sort of thing but that covering of mouth when you cough or you sneeze, washing your hands, that sort of thing, it really can make such a difference. Washing your hands, washing your face. I have a weak immune system. It doesn't take me much to get sick. Also, stay home if you're not feeling well. Don't go out and spread your sickness. Take care of yourselves and the people around you. Don't feel like you have to push it. Yeah, and I don't, I'm still one of those folks, you know, we mentioned the use of masks which I know can create some pretty strong emotions with folks when you ask about should I be wearing a mask again but I still have kind of that practice especially on airplanes is kind of one of the main times where I sort of still stick one on especially when you're in close proximity to a number of people. Maybe the air circulation isn't as best as it would be if you're outdoors, that sort of thing, but obviously it's personal preference. They're not recommending it for everybody across the board now but it might be something important to consider especially if you're in some of those crowded spaces. Have them handy just in case.