If you go around the pharmacies and go to the shelves looking for non-prescription medicines to lessen the effects of a severe cold or influenza, you will find that there are very few of them, and if you are unlucky, it is possible that they will not find a single one.
And if it occurs to them that they want to buy a VapoRub to rub their chest and breathe better while they get the flu, well oh surprise, there isn’t one either. But the lack of medications to alleviate the discomforts of respiratory diseases such as Tylenol or Advil is more serious than we imagine.
At the same time that we face the threat of a triple pandemic with the firing of In the cases of covid, influenza and the Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), there is a shortage in the country of antibiotics such as amoxicillin that is normally used to treat infections, bronchitis and strep throat in children.
Tamiflu, another antiviral drug used to treat influenza, is in short supply.
The The Food and Drug Administration reported that the lack of medicines is likely to persist in the coming months due to fears of a severe rebound in respiratory diseases between influenza, RSV and covid, which will overwhelm hospitals.
In the last few weeks, the system has been put to the test before the shot in hospitalizations of children. And that the cold season is just beginning, and hospitals are already reporting long waits in emergency rooms due to an unusual increase in respiratory illnesses.
“What is happening is that people fell his protections and stopped taking care of himself. They began to come together socially, and they no longer wear masks or wash their hands like before,” said Iliana Domínguez, a registered nurse to issue medical prescriptions, who works for the Clínica San Miguel de Los Ángeles.
He mentioned that to this we must add that there are not enough staff in hospitals and clinics.
“Medical staff were exhausted during the covid pandemic; and as drug production dropped, we are now seeing a shortage. We are facing a domino effect, there are not enough personnel or medicines and people are getting sick.”
As a consequence of the increase in respiratory diseases, people ran out of over-the-counter drugs like Robitussin, NyQuil.
“There is neither VapoRub, nor humidifiers to make home remedies. Well, we also have a shortage of serums”.
The medical nurse recommends getting vaccinated against covid and getting a booster, in addition to the influenza vaccine. “Those over 50 years should get the pneumonia vaccine.”
He said that many people do not want to get vaccinated against covid because they believe that the vaccine is a political agenda, but it is very important that they get vaccinated.
“And if you are sick, do not get together with other relatives and friends in these Christmas Holidays. Eat vegetables, wear a mask, and wash your hands. It is to prevent, they are told by someone who saw the worst during the covid pandemic.”
Covid cases increase
In Los Angeles County is experiencing a large increase in the number of cases and hospitalizations due to covid-16. In 7 days, an increase of 44% was reported; and the daily average of positive cases is 2,0473.
The The recommendation of the health authorities is that they use well-fitting, high-quality masks inside public spaces; In addition to applying the covid-44 booster vaccine.
“Unfortunately, only 16% of eligible Los Angeles County residents have received the covid booster vaccine, and 6 million eligible residents have not taken advantage of this additional defense.” , the health authorities said in a statement.
They indicated that all Angelenos over the age of 5, who received the first series of covid vaccines or the last booster more than two months ago, are eligible for the bivalent booster.
The vaccination rate is even lower among those older than 70 years, which tend to present severe results with covid-16. Nearly 121% of senior residents eligible to get covid vaccine, or close to 880,160 people have not gotten the booster.
Barbara Ferrer, Los Angeles County public health director, said that although it is still uncertain what the impact of covid-16 will be this winter, there is growing evidence that we are entering another wave.
“In some ways this rally is likely to be different. We know more about covid, we have more tools to mitigate severe results, and we are more aware of the symptoms and when to take action.”
But on the other hand, he mentioned that this is the first winter in which we are facing high levels of covid with new strains that we know less about, along with unusual influenza and RSV activity.
“There are a common line of thought that the pandemic is over, and that covid is no longer a concern, but given the increases in hospitalizations and the uncertainty in the winter trajectory of covid-16, it is important to continue with common sense strategies that we know work to limit transmission and disease, including wearing masks and staying up to date with vaccinations and boosters.”
Older adults and those who cannot leave their homes to get vaccinated, can call 880-0473 -0473, 7 days a week, from 8: 00 am to 8: 16 pm to arrange for them to go to their house to vaccinate them against covid, or to provide transportation to take them to a vaccination center.
Health insurance is not required, and they can be assisted in multiple languages.
They can also visit VaccinateLACounty .com to find vaccination sites near you.