Dr. Brendan Hanley, the territory's medical officer of health, has confirmed the territory's first case of hospitalization of a patient suffering from the H1N1 flu virus.

"The first patient was a child, with an underlying chronic condition who was hospitalized last week and has now been released,” Hanley said in a statement Tuesday afternoon, noting the laboratory confirmed the child had H1N1.

"We are seeing more flu activity right now and it was to be expected that some of our cases would be hospitalized. We are very fortunate that until now, most cases have been mild.”

In an interview this morning, Hanley said the little boy was in the hospital for three or four days where he was treated for pneumonia and the flu. His flu symptoms, Hanley said, were never severe.

"He did very well,” he said.

At this point, Hanley said, there are no other confirmed hospitalized H1N1 sufferers. There have, however, been people coming as outpatients and some admitted to hospital with respiratory issues where H1N1 hasn't been confirmed.

Hanley won't be reporting numbers on all lab confirmed cases because, it was noted in Tuesday's press release, those numbers don't reflect the actual situation with physicians and community nurses being asked to only test individuals for H1N1 who already have other risk factors or severe illness.

Those who have had the flu this season are being advised they should still get the H1N1 shot.

"We cannot assume it was H1N1,” Hanley said of the illnesses Yukoners may have experienced already.

As he pointed out, there are a lot of other viruses that can mimic the flu, but be something else.

Even if an individual has had the flu and it was H1N1, he pointed out, getting the shot will not do any harm.

While most transmission of H1N1 occurs in the first two or three days of the illness, Hanley said, the average communicable time is about a week, while it can be longer for those who are more sick.

It's advised that people go back to school or work when they are feeling better, he said, noting that it's recognized that in doing so, some people may still be shedding a small part of the illness.

After two days of the vaccination being available in the territory, a total of 1,674 people had received it.

While there's a number of locations around the Yukon where individuals can get the shot, the busiest is likely at the Canada Games Centre.

"It was busy still yesterday,” Hanley said. As of about mid-day Tuesday, there was between an hour's and 90 minutes' waiting time to get the shot, a short period compared to what people are experiencing in larger centres down south.

Hanley said he's been pleased to see that no one seems too upset by the waiting times, with many finding something else to do at the Canada Games Centre while they wait or head back to work until it's closer to their time for the shot.

Still others seem to prefer to remain near the line chatting with others who are there to get the vaccination.

Along with the public vaccination clinics, facilities like the hospital, Whitehorse Correctional Centre and Copper Ridge Place, among others, are having on-site clinics.

The hospital had its clinic earlier this week, with the jail set to host a clinic for staff and inmates tomorrow.

"There was great uptake at the hospital by staff,” Hanley said.

While there's no mandatory policy for certain groups to get the flu shot, he said, the "strong encouragement” for health care workers and other groups to get it seems to be a success, given the numbers of people that have been vaccinated in the last two days.

Clinics are continuing this week in Whitehorse at:

• the Canada Games Centre, from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. every day until Friday and then from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday with the same hours next week;

• Golden Horn School, today from 3:30 p.m. until 7 p.m.;

• Kwanlin Dun Health Centre, today and Thursday from 9 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. until 4 p.m.;

• Salvation Army, on Thursday from 11:30 a.m. until 2 p.m.;

• Hidden Valley School, on Thursday from 3:30 p.m. until 7 p.m.; and

• Marsh Lake Community Centre, from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m.

Further clinics will continue for the next two weeks, with the communities holding their main clinics in their health centres.