Whooping cough outbreak confirmed near Rosthern

An outbreak of whooping cough has been confirmed in the area around Rosthern, about 70 km northeast of Saskatoon.

Deputy Medical Health Officer Dr. Simon Kapaj confirmed the latest outbreak involved 25 cases, almost entirely in children under 18, with about half being kids under 5.

“We have contacted all of them, they have visited their family doctor, they have been put on treatment and all of them are doing well,” he said.

One case saw an infant under two months old taken briefly to hospital, but Kapaj said that case was also under control, with the child expected to make a full recovery.

Kapaj said the outbreak was a reminder of the importance for parents to keep their kids immunizations up-to-date.

He said there were a number of reasons why parents might not get their children all their shots.

“Some of them are hesitant. Some of them don’t have the necessary time to go to the public health clinic to get the shot and some, they don’t know that their child is not up-to-date.”

With vaccines available for free at all public health clinics across Saskatchewan, Kapaj urged parents to call and make sure both they and their kids are vaccinated.

“We have the vaccine, the vaccine is free and we are able to provide that shot. So from that, I think we shouldn’t see whooping cough cases at all,” he said.

People can find out their immunization history and schedule any necessary vaccines with a call to their local public health office.