Multnomah County health officials urge many families to reconsider Thanksgiving as RSV infections surge - Oregon Public Broadcasting

Multnomah County Health officials are recommending families with children 3 and younger consider skipping Thanksgiving gatherings.

Ann Loeffler, a pediatric infectious disease expert and deputy health officer for the county.

Officials think that’s among the main reasons this year’s RSV season is so intense and why all of the county’s pediatric intensive care beds are in use.

Jennifer Vines, Multnomah County’s health officer.

Doernbecher Children’s Hospital at OHSU and Randall Children’s Hospital, both in Portland, announced this week that they would have nurses treat more patients at a time in an effort to free up additional beds for young patients requiring intensive care.

The crunch in pediatric beds has made it hard for teens having mental health crises to get the care they need as well, as OPB has reported.

With flu on the rise and an uptick in COVID-19 also starting, health officials say to continue to pay attention and get vaccinated for anything that you can — including whooping cough — to keep yourself healthy and help prevent the spread of disease.

On Wednesday, public health officials in Multnomah County, Oregon, urged people to cancel Thanksgiving dinner plans involving children younger than 3, older adults, and people with immune conditions.

Teens in mental health crisis – the state’s other major pediatric hospital population – are having to wait for care