CTV News Montreal

Updated: Thu Nov. 12 2009 11:20:23 AM

ctvmontreal.ca

A 21-year-old man from Laval is the latest victim of the deadly swine flu.

He died Wednesday at Cite-de-la-Sante hospital because of the flu, and complications from an existing medical condition.

He is the second person to die in Laval, and the 21st death since the second wave of the flu began at the end of August.

Health officials in Quebec say nearly all of the people killed after contracting the H1N1 virus have had other health problems.

Meanwhile close to 1,000 people in Quebec have been hospitalized with the flu, and most of them are children.

"Fifty-eight percent of hospitalized cases were 19 and under," said provincial Health Director Alain Poirier.

Emergency rooms throughout the province are seeing a steady increase in the number of patients with swine flu, and more patients are being admitted, sometimes into intensive care.

To date, one million Quebecers have received the swine flu vaccine.

Now health authorities are working to bus schoolchildren to vaccination centres.

Health officials believe the virus is expected to reach its peak in Quebec in the next two or three weeks.

Comments are now closed for this story

Christine Seguin
All of the deaths we hear about seem to have an underlying medical condition attached to it. Perhaps if the public would know of these conditions, it would prompt them to go for their flu shots earlier. I was confused when I went for my shot. It seemed that some people thought I was under chronic and others did not. The chronic list was never clarified. I heard several doctors say that a chronic condition is condsidered when a person has to take any kind of medication on a daily basis. Why can't this be clarified properly. Quit telling us "underlying medical condition and let us know what they are".

sc
I completely agree with the above comment. my brother has a liver condition and does take daily medications yet he is not considered priority. everything about this campaign is confusing. i just can't wait for the worrying to end.

Richard Cooney
I agree with one of your readers. Simply stating that the death of a H1N1 patient was in association with underlying conditions is not very good reporting. What the population is wanting and deserving to know is correct information. The numbers of deaths across Canada are relatively low. Often they are quoting percentages of different age groups but that is it.These conditions that were the cause of deaths should be stated. The facts should be available from WHO and it is your job to release them. This will be better for all.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Very often the health agency reporting the flu-associated death does not indicate exactly which other condition the deceased had.

Jennifer Hunter
My 14 year old daughter with Down's Syndrome, chronically ill with pneumonia and who had heart surgery in the past was refused, we were told she has to wait for her age group! We went there knowing for sure she would get it, isn't she part of the chronically ill?

firstMickey
I have to agree with the person who wants to know what the underlying medical conditions are.
I have two underlying medical conditions, but must wait until my turn to get a flu shot. Next week, I will be waiting in line outside to get my flu shot in the evening. I hope we have mild weather. I plan to take a chair and dress for winter and hope they don't run out of medication.

tommy v
time for the facts to come out.
in each and every case of "swine flu"their are underlying medical conditions, as far as deaths attributed to this mystery desease.i think it's high time for the government to hold an inquiry into the medical term "underlying conditions", so frequently used in these reports.is there an epidemic happening or are the health ministers and the pharmacuetical companies exploiting public funds for their own personal gain.having mass vaccination clinics are only exposing an already vulnerable public to bacteria and germs passing through these mass vaccination clinics,logically, this would only spread the flu more rapidly rather than reduce the chance of it spreading. it is time for our public officials to start asking questions before thinking about giving answers to questions that have yet to be asked!!

Joannie Leclerc
Here is information about the h1n1 vaccine that is important for Canadians to know before choosing to get vaccinated. I am certain I will not see any of the included information below on your news broadcast. It would undo all the hard work you have done in creating a huge propaganda of fear and lies. The h1n1 vaccine is not safe and you are giving the general public information that is false. Information that will kill and harm a portion of the population. I never thought Canadian media was bought but I guess it has become clear in the last few weeks.

By the way, the 13 year old hockey player died of meningitis and not h1n1, but same difference, right? And of the people reported to have died form h1n1 it is never disclosed to us whether they had received the h1n1 vaccine or Tamiflu. The h1n1 vaccine and Tamiflu are both contributing factors in most "h1n1 realted" deaths.

You should be ashamed for not reporting the truth!!!