I'm in Pittsburgh as well, an RN (not in a hospital, though), and my husband is an RN as well at UPMC. He said alot of coworkers are out with the flu although no patient deaths (that he knows of) have been blamed on it. My 7 year old daughter has been home sick all week and alot of my kids classmates have been out, too. But we've heard nothing out of the ordinary.
Keep in mind- small children, the elderly, and those already with chronic diseases and lowered immune systems are the ones most at risk for developing complications (sometimes lethal). While I certainly don't doubt that there have been flu related deaths this season, there's always the possibility that they fell into these high risk groups.
BTW- I've never gotten the swine flu vaccine nor did my husband. Last year his unit was told that those workers who refused the vaccine provided by the hospital had to sign a document and wear a face mask while working. He never mentioned anything about this year, though.
edit on
24-2-2011 by Abbby because: no reason
