By all accounts, 48-year-old Lynette Buhler was the picture of health. The single mother dedicated her life to her children and the elderly patients she cared for in her job at a nursing home.
“She touched everybody’s life that she met. She was kind, always,” said Brandy Fatteicher, Buhler’s 24-year-old daughter.
But in late February, Buhler, who lived in Qu’Appelle — about 57 kilometres east of Regina — picked up a flu bug and was sick enough she had to miss her final two shifts at the Regina care home where she worked.
Buhler’s friend Sue McGee said she became worryingly ill over the weekend.
McGee said Buhler’s partner drove her to a nearby hospital in Indian Head where she was diagnosed with influenza A.
McGee said Buhler was sent home with Tamiflu, an antiviral medication used to treat influenza, and told to rest and drink plenty of fluids. It didn’t help.
“He said she can’t even sit up. She lost bladder control and she was vomiting,” McGee said.
“She was crying and she was in pain,” Fatteicher said.
Buhler’s condition continued to worsen and she was taken by ambulance and admitted to intensive care at the Pasqua Hospital in Regina, McGee said.
Fatteicher, who lives in Waldheim, said that when she arrived in Regina her mother was desperately sick.
“They were basically telling us that she’s fighting, she’s very tough, she might pull through from this. But as a health-care worker myself, when I walked into the room, I knew better,” Fatteicher said.
On March 4, 2025, Buhler died, one week after contracting influenza.
“She was the healthiest person I knew,” Fatteicher said.
Five influenza-related deaths in March
Buhler isn’t the only adult under 65 diagnosed with influenza to die in March.
The family of a 33-year-old single mother confirmed to CBC that she also died in a Regina hospital from complications of influenza.
A published obituary for Nattea Anais Haus stated that she died March 28 from influenza complications, leaving behind her six-year-old daughter to be raised by family.
According to the Ministry of Health, there have been 12 influenza-related deaths since Jan. 1 in Saskatchewan, a number it says is on par with previous years.
The Community Respiratory Illness Surveillance Program (CRISP), which monitors influenza and COVID-19 cases in the province, recorded five influenza deaths between March 9 and April 5 of this year, but the actual number could be higher.
There were no influenza-related deaths recorded on March 4, the day Buhler died.
McGee and Fatteicher said they’re still waiting on Buhler’s medical records and an official cause of death, which could change the CRISP statistics.
Vaccination effective against influenza: microbiologist
Joseph Blondeau, a clinical microbiologist with the University of Saskatchewan, said many people don’t realize how serious influenza can be.
“Unfortunately this is a virus that can cause death across all age groups,” Blondeau said.
“It can be a very, very pathogenic virus.”
Blondeau said this past flu season was a bad one, with test positivity rates for influenza A hitting 25 per cent.
“25 per cent means there’s a lot of influenza. This was a bad year for influenza A.”
Blondeau said the flu vaccine provided good protection, falling within the range of 40-60 per cent coverage, but he said vaccination rates have been dropping, leaving fewer people protected from severe illness.
“We have some legitimate concerns about vaccine complacency.”
Fatteicher said that, to her knowledge, her mom had never received a flu shot.
“My mom was a tough person,” she said.
“She was healthy as a horse and … she got sick super quick and easy and passed away.”
