BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) -- Remember when staying healthy during the winter months meant taking certain precautions against getting the flu? Ah, for those simpler days. Staying healthy this year means guarding against what health officials are calling a “quad-demic” – a quartet of infectious viruses. The trifecta of flu, COVID-19 and RSV is bad enough, but this year throw in other lesser but still consequential bugs, including norovirus. What can you do? Wash your hands, then wash them again later. Good hygiene practices are vital. Limit your exposure to the outside world if you’re feeling run down, and wear a mask if you’re worried about exposure.  William Franklin is an emergency medicine physician at Adventist Health, where they’ve seen an 18% increase in hospitalizations for respiratory illnesses like RSV, Covid and influenza A just in the past month. "I think people should be concerned," Franklin said. "The viruses are out there. We’re seeing a lot of it, especially influenza right now. Seeing a little bit of influenza B even, which usually comes around a little bit later in the season." New year, new wealth: 5 tips to help you save more money in 2025 What about vaccines? They’re suddenly controversial. Darrell Brown says he just got over the flu or something. Why didn’t he get vaccinated? "The vaccines, they’re coming out, like, within the next day," Brown said. "People are, like, 'Oh, usually people (at pharmaceutical companies) do their research on it' (more carefully)." Nonsense – get vaccinated, says Kian Azimian, an emergency medicine doctor for Dignity Health, whose staff has seen a 40% month over month increase in emergency room patients at Mercy Hospital and a 32% increase in pediatric emergency room patients at Memorial. "Vaccines are 100% safe," Azimian said. "Vaccinate your family members, your loved ones. Get the vaccine. The percentage of people that had any adverse effect from vaccines, it’s so incredibly low that the risk of having an illness vs. the benefit is – it’s not even in the same ballpark." Jill Baker is on board with that. "I’ve had every single Covid vaccine you can get," she said. "I get all the flu vaccines, I get all the vaccines. Go vaccines! I didn’t vote for Trump." Cases of the flu reached 40 million in 2023-24, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Though most people recover within days, 28,000 people died last flu season. The good news: You can do something about it.