Respiratory illnesses on the rise in Delaware: What to know

Shannon Marvel McNaught, Delaware News Journal
Updated ·2 min read

It's January. It's cold and gray, and the leaves on the trees have been replaced by patients in the emergency rooms.

“Like many parts of the nation, Delaware is experiencing increases in respiratory illnesses," Delaware Healthcare Association President Brian Frazee said in a statement. "These increases are creating a surge in patients seeking care in hospital emergency departments, which has an impact on hospital capacity, workforce, and emergency department wait times."

Patients are presenting with increasing numbers of COVID-19, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and flu, according to association spokesperson Christina Crooks Bryan.

Delaware saw 1,066 new COVID-19 cases the week of Jan. 3-9, the My Healthy Community website reveals. However, there's no data from the last six months to compare that to.

A flu shot is administered in the arm of a person visiting the annual free flu shot event held by the Division of Public Health at the Porter State Service Center.
A flu shot is administered in the arm of a person visiting the annual free flu shot event held by the Division of Public Health at the Porter State Service Center.

The My Healthy Community website shows only the most recent week of available data and allows you to download historical data that runs up through June 2023.

"The Downloadable Data contains data only up until June 2023 because when the public health emergency (PHE) ended in Delaware in May 2023, the reporting changed from daily to weekly updates. This is a temporary issue that does not have anything to do with manpower," said Laura Matusheski, the media relations coordinator for the public health division of the state Department of Health and Social Services, in an email. The vendor is working on updating the data download feature for weekly data, Matusheski said.

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The My Healthy Community website does have recent historical data for flu cases. Flu cases are rising, but they're nowhere near the numbers Delaware saw last year. The most recently available data, from the week of Dec. 24-30, showed 691 new flu cases statewide. The number has been going up by at least 100 new cases weekly since December began.

RSV data is not publicly tracked by the state.

"While our hospitalization levels are not what they were during the pandemic, the trend is increasing," Crooks Bryan said. "Our hospital EDs have seen an uptick in patients in recent weeks."

Beebe Healthcare in Lewes last week began requiring masks for patients, visitors and employees "to help slow transmission amidst this seasonal rise in cases," according to a news release.

“Beebe leaders are making this recommendation based on the data we track for community spread of our three main respiratory illnesses, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and COVID-19,” Beebe Infectious Disease Physician Bill Chasanov said in the news release.

Bayhealth began requiring masks Jan. 4, and masks remain required at TidalHealth facilities. Masking is still optional for patients at ChristianaCare and Nemours.

Shannon Marvel McNaught reports on Sussex County and beyond. Reach her at smcnaught@gannett.com or on Twitter @MarvelMcNaught.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: What to know about the rise in respiratory illnesses in Delaware