A SPECIALISED medication aimed at preventing the Covid-19 protein from entering cells of positive patients will be available at the Mount Gambier and District Hospital Covid care centre.
The medication, Sotrivimab, has been approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration and helps prevent severe Covid effects.
Limestone Coast Local Health Network executive director of medical services Dr Elaine Pretorius said the medication would prevent the patient from deteriorating, with clinical trials showing it reduces mild to moderate hospitalisation by about five per cent.
“In moderate to severe cases it can reduce the risk of ending up in the intensive care unit,” Dr Pretorius said.
“If there are people who are at home but are unwell, or have certain conditions that we know puts them at risk of rapid deterioration, we will be able to administer this medication.”
She said the medication would not need special training for staff to administer with all staff in the centre able to do so.
“The medication prevents the Covid virus from attaching to the cell and once the virus has attached to the cell and enters it, it is able to replicate and that is what the medication prevents,” Dr Pretorius said.
