(NewsNation) — Doctors are warning of a “tripledemic” of a surge of COVID-19, influenza and RSV cases coming all at once this winter season.
Dr. Kristin Englund, an infectious diseases specialist at Cleveland Clinic, joined “NewsNation Live” on Monday to discuss ways that Americans can prepare for this upcoming surge.
“We know that COVID numbers are stable right now but we certainly are concerned as to what we’re going to see after the holidays. Now that everybody has been getting together with families and traveling across the country, we may start to see an increase in COVID again — as well as influenza and, unfortunately, RSV in our children and our very old,” she noted.
Englund emphasized the importance of vaccines in a timely fashion to protect against illness.
“It does take at least two weeks for any vaccine to really start to become effective. So you want to start planning well ahead of time,” she advised. “If you’re planning on getting together with family members over the upcoming holidays, don’t wait until the last minute to either get the bivalent COVID vaccine, or, importantly, your flu vaccine. Get them now. It takes two weeks and they’ll last at least several months. So don’t wait.”
In addition to vaccines, Americans can also take extra precautions to protect themselves.
“Make sure that you’re using some form of protection, whether it be masking, or social distancing or trying to do things outdoors,” she said.
Englund also advised viewers to think about using masking to protect others.
“I’d say it’s really difficult to be able to tell the difference between a common cold and some of the early symptoms of RSV or influenza or COVID, so if you’re going out into public and you have any kinds of symptoms I think it’s important for you to wear a mask and protect those around you,” she said. “Because you don’t know what the immunologic status is of those people around you. And you certainly don’t want to be passing something on to someone else.”