B.C. health officials under fire for delayed release of pediatric flu death numbers

British Columbia’s top doctor is promising more transparency about the alarming number of kids dying from the flu.

Health officials announced Thursday they will be releasing weekly reports going forward as hospitals continue to be overwhelmed by a surge of young patients.

But opposition leader Kevin Falcon is questioning why it took so long for the province to confirm the deaths.

“This is an unfortunate pattern and that they are extremely secretive and they don't share information with the public,” Falcon told CTV News. . 

“It was the media and doctors and families that actually started coming forward with this information ... I don't think that inspires public confidence." 

Weekly updates on flu-related deaths will now be posted to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control’s website.

Critics also argue the province isn't doing enough to protect families. Only about 20 per cent of eligible kids under the age of 12 have been immunized so far.

The province has opened up about 20 walk-in clinics in the Lower Mainland to make it easier and more accessible for parents to do so.

Six children and youth have died from the flu so far this year – a shocking stat considering there are only about six deaths across the entire country during a typical flu season.

Dr. Bonnie Henry formally acknowledged the young lives lost for the first time in a statement Thursday.

“My thoughts are with families and communities impacted by the loss of a loved one,” she wrote.

Henry revealed one of the deceased was younger than five, three were between the ages of five and nine, and two were between 15 and 19.

"Influenza is not necessarily a benign disease,” said Dr. Brian Conway, an infectious disease expert. “Hospitalizations, especially in children, and mortality are far less than with COVID. But these things can certainly happen and infected children can infect adults who are immunocompromised, at risk of the more serious consequences of influenza.”

Conway says the severity of influenza this year is catching even health officials by surprise.

“This is an epic flu season and what we're seeing right now is the consequences of that,” said Conway.

Henry says while the deaths are still being investigated, some of the kids contracted bacterial infections, which can be a complication of the flu.

“This is an unusual season with unusual characteristics, including an early and intense surge in cases. With this unusual pattern, enhanced surveillance has been implemented that includes reporting of pediatric influenza-related deaths to public-health officials,” she wrote.

She called the deaths tragic but rare, and stressed the importance of getting kids vaccinated.

Meanwhile, hospitals have been overrun dealing with an influx of patients. Falcon said he feels bad for families who have spent 10-plus hours waiting in emergency rooms with their sick kids.

“I never thought we'd see a situation where a health-care system has deteriorated to a point to this day, but again, this did not happen overnight. It's almost six years of a government that has fully mismanaged the system and now we're really paying the price,” said Falcon.

Hospitals across the country have been cancelling surgeries and appointments as they redirect staff to deal with a surge of pediatric patients.

It’s an issue Canada’s premiers addressed in a press conference Friday where they called on the federal government to increase its share of health-care costs.

With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Lisa Steacy