'Flu epidemic rages with patient numbers up by 26% in a week

Health services in most of the north and centre of the mainland are in deep strife with A&E departments full to bursting and reported waits of up to 30 hours for non-urgent cases to be seen.

In the Balearic Islands, Catalunya and Asturias, the epidemic has apparently reached its peak, although in the regions of Valencia and Murcia, the real crisis is not expected to hit until the end of the month.

Only Andalucía, the Canary Islands and the Spanish-owned city-province of Ceuta on the northern Moroccan coast appear to have escaped.

With a 26% rise in diagnoses in the past week, a total of 25 outbreaks have been reported in seven of Spain's regions, plus another 19 in elderly residents' homes and six in hospitals, compared with eight in total a week ago.

The majority of 'flu incidences reported correspond with the A-virus, or AH3N2.

Navarra, in the north, is the worst-hit with 4.12% of its population hit with the 'flu, followed by Castilla y León with nearly 4.1% and the Basque Country at 3.99%.

Cantabria is also at nearly double the average with 3.88% of its headcount currently suffering influenza; in La Rioja, 3.51% have been diagnosed and in Extremadura in the west, 3.36%.

Since the start of winter, a total of 103 people have died from the 'flu, largely because of existing health conditions causing complications, and the situation is expected to become continually worse.

Doctors in the Comunidad Valenciana have said they expect the epidemic to strike the region and its surrounding provinces by the end of the month, since children are normally the first to catch it when they go back to school, and pass it on to adults.

After a 'flu vaccination, it takes at least two weeks before the patient is immune, meaning in the event of the new school term sparking or aggravating an outbreak, it is best to be inoculated by Christmas at the latest.

Anyone with any health conditions affecting the functioning of the organism – heart, kidneys, liver, circulation, diabetes, cancer, and so on – and anyone who works in close contact with the public is eligible for a free 'flu jab, as well as the entire population aged 65 and over irrespective of their general health.

Anyone else who wants to avoid coming down with the virus can buy a 'flu vaccination from a high-street chemist and either inject it themselves at home, or take it to their local health centre where a nurse will do so.

The typical cost is around €20, although anyone visiting the UK can have a jab for around 10 pounds, or €12.30.

Chairman of the Medical Colleges Organisation (OMC) Dr Juan José Rodríguez Sendín says 'every year, the same thing happens'.

He said planning in advance is vital, rather than waiting until the epidemic strikes and complaining about the lack of beds in hospitals.

“We already know it's going to happen, so there's not sense moaning about it when it does; we have to plan for it,” Dr Rodríguez Sendín says.

Nurses' union SATSE has warned of 'major delays' in attending to patients in A&E at numerous hospitals across the country, although the most serious issue is the lack of beds for those who need to be admitted, it says.

Citing one hospital, the Reina Sofía in Córdoba, SATSE says waiting times in A&E range from three hours to up to nine or 10 hours, depending upon the severeity of the patient's condition and time of day.

Doctors have urged anyone who thinks they may be coming down with the 'flu to go firstly to their local walk-in 24-hour clinic if they believe they need medical attention, but that otherwise and for very low-risk cases, the best treatment is painkillers, decongestants, anti-inflammatories, drinking lots of fluids, and bed-rest.