March 9, 2022 | The Reflector

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THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF INDIANAPOLIS

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100

I S S UE 9

MARCH 9, 2022

Eli Lilly COVID treatment By Jacob Walton EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an emergency use authorization for a combination of Bamlanivimab and Etesevimab, a new prophylaxis drug for COVID-19 developed by Eli Lilly & Co, on Feb. 11, according to the FDA website. This drug, known as a monoclonal antibody treatment, is an alternate treatment for COVID-19, and while not being the first of its kind, it is one of the first that is resistant to its variants, such as Delta and Omicron, Assistant Professor of Public Health Kara Cecil said. According to the drugs fact sheet, the pairing of the drugs can work as a treatment for mild symptoms, as well as post-exposure prophylaxis, or treatment, for those that are either not fully vaccinated, immunocompromised or otherwise at high-risk from COVID-19. Cecil said that one of the most important things that come into play when addressing if you should take the Eli Lilly-produced drug is your risk factors and making sure you understand those. “In terms of chronic diseases, that will impact a lot of this audience. Heart disease is going to be rather low in this audience, but obesity and smoking

behaviors is the other thing, and those Cecil said that drugs like this are are modifiable health behaviors,” Cecil helpful in moving away from COVID-19 said. “So if someone is concerned about infection resulting in hospitalization. their risk for severe disease, of any shape The goal is not to decline the number or form, COVID[-19] or otherwise, of cases, she said, but rather to focus on those are modifiable health behaviors. So making the disease less severe and more there's something you can do about that controlled, similar to influenza and the to decrease your risk of severe disease.” common cold. The drug is still going through “That's really the measure we want to trials as of Reflector press time, and be looking at when we're looking at the the fact sheet states that there is still burden of disease. We never want to get limited information about the safety or to zero colds; I mean zero colds would effectiveness of the drug pairing. Cecil be great, but it's not going to happen. said the emergency It's just not realistic. use authorization But we don't want process is a lengthy colds killing people one and goes and putting them ... there's something through several in the hospital. you can do about that to steps before being It's the same thing given approval. happening here,” decrease your risk ..." “If the testing Cecil said. “. . . But of the new drug is the benefit of having consistently looking these medications positive . . . and there’s a significant benefit [is] to provide to someone post-exposure to getting that drug to market, they can who was also high-risk….So if I have a issue an emergency use authorization,” COVID[-19] exposure having no other Cecil said. “And that is a temporary risk factors, my concerns are minimal authorization to use that drug while they …. So we want to prevent those highcontinue those studies until it does or risk individuals from developing severe does not receive final approval. Now, if the diseases. That's the goal of these.” data were to come back in a surprising way Cecil said the best way to see how that it would be causing more harm, or effective drugs like Bamlanivimab and it wasn't having the efficacy that initially Etesevimab will be is to look at the showed, it would be pulled.” past behaviors of disease and use those

as predictors. Prior to the development of these drugs, they had monoclonal antibodies which she said is similar to sharing immunity from one person to another. Cecil said these pills are using a similar science but with a lower barrier to entry as monoclonal antibodies, which have to be injected intravenously (IV), compared to the pills seen with Bamlanivimab and Etesevimab. She said the lower supply of monoclonal antibodies paired with the cost makes these new drugs much more valuable. “One, it takes fewer medical resources between the monoclonal antibodies and the pills; you can take it home,” Cecil said. “And two, people have genuine phobias of needles, and that comes in all shapes and sizes, and so that would include intravenous transfusion of antibodies. People will avoid getting that or put off getting that because they just simply don't want to have a needle stuck on their arm—they don't want to have an IV.” The difference between these treatments and the vaccines that have been rolled out is the difference between active and passive immunization, Cecil said. The vaccines provide your body with the map for fighting the disease, but these pills are helping fight the virus before it becomes more severe within the body, she said.

Traffic stop training for students UIndy police department expands its workshop availability for all students By Hallie Gallinat FEATURE EDITOR

In an email sent out on Feb. 16 by Vice President for Student and Campus Affairs and Dean of Students Kory Vitangeli, the University of Indianapolis will start holding traffic stop training beginning in March. Sgt. Dallas Gaines Jr. said these traffic stop training sessions discuss what happens during a traffic stop, or when someone is pulled over. The training began on March 3 and will continue through the month of April, according to the email. Workshop instructor Lt. Brandon Pate said that this training was originally taken by criminal justice students, where they would go through traffic stop scenarios. However, he said he spoke with Vice President and Chief Inclusion and Equity Officer Amber Smith about expanding the workshop. “… We had talked about, ‘Is there something that you can do to bring more students in that have questions about traffic stops and how they should go?’” Pate said. “And the more you see in the media traffic stops going bad, the more it raises questions about, ‘What should we do? What is legal, what's okay? What can we ask?’ So just kind of a natural progression from something we were already kind of doing with a certain group to something that we can do with everybody.” The training begins with laying out one of a couple different pre-built scenarios, Pate said, and they will go through the scenario and follow it with a debriefing. After this portion, people will have the opportunity to ask questions. “It's a chance for students to look at an officer directly and say, 'Hey, why are there four cars on a traffic stop sometimes?' Or 'Why does it seem like there's always one officer standing there watching the car while the other one's talking to somebody?’” Pate said. “Or 'Do I have to

Photo Contributed by Brandon Pate

University of Indianapolis police officers simulate a typical traffic stop with criminal justice students. The police department had been conducting this workshop with criminal justice majors in the past, but have decided to make the program to all students on campus.

get out of the car? Does the passenger have to show their ID?' So it's a chance for students to interact, ask us those questions that they've been wondering, or maybe some of the questions that they've heard of a bad scenario, and they want to ask, 'Hey, how can we prevent that from happening?' Or 'Why did it go that way?' And it's just for us to get together and talk it out.” The training features a relaxed environment, Pate said, and while each training session features the same content, each session is designed to have a different group attending. While these groups are invited to come, they are open to anyone, Pate said. “The first one is Greyhound Village, [University] Lofts and College Crossing. That's who we're inviting to that,” Pate said. “Then we have northside residence halls, southside, RSOs [Registered Student Organizations], commuters and then some of the equity and inclusion groups. So it'll be the same kind of structured scenario that will lead up to open conversation.” Gaines said attendees can expect to learn how to conduct themselves at a traffic stop. He said that the traffic stop training sessions feature a low-stress

environment and gives police officers a chance to engage with students. “… It's kind of giving the perspective from being in a traffic stop from the officer's view and what we would like to see and what we're kind of looking for, and the person that's being stopped, what they see and what they should do during a traffic stop,” Gaines said. “But it's a controlled environment; it's safe. It takes the whole stress level out, and it's kind of a learning tool between the community and the police department where we can have a Q and A session afterwards where they can ask us questions where you typically wouldn't be able to ask when you're on a traffic stop.” Pate said the traffic stop training not only gives opportunities for community interactions, but it can also help make attendees less nervous when getting pulled over. He said that being anxious during a traffic stop can factor into someone’s reaction and an officer can notice this reaction. “If we can kind of bridge some of that unknown, maybe on a traffic stop we won't be as nervous. We won't be as worried,” Pate said. “It's important to know what your rights are on a traffic

stop. It's important to know what you can and can't do. I think the biggest thing you can take away is just a little more comfortability. Learn the agency, learn the officers and know your rights.” Gaines said this training can create a plan in attendees’ minds for what happens if they get pulled over. He said that for young drivers, this experience can be traumatizing, so he believes people should attend for the experience and knowledge. “Sometimes people react differently when they're nervous or when they're scared, but if you have a plan ahead of time, it kind of eases that tension,” Gaines said. “When officers train, and you train for the unexpected or you train for different scenarios and stuff like that, if it's nothing brand new, then you have some framework and some groundwork to kind of work from. But I think everybody should go through something like this too.” The next traffic stop training will take place on April 6 from 12 p.m. - 2 p.m. at the University Police Department, according to Vitangeli’s email. Attendees will meet at noon in the parking lot or inside in the case of bad weather, Pate said.

reflector.uindy.edu

Update to mask and capacity policies By Kiara Conley ONLINE EDITOR

The University of Indianapolis has updated their COVID-19 mask and space capacity policies, with university spaces being allowed at full capacity and masks will be optional on campus except for classrooms, labs, instructional areas and close contact areas, according to an email sent by University President Robert Manuel on March 2. These changes were implemented following a meeting of the COVID-19 Task Force and considering the recently updated recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released on Feb. 25. Masks: • Masks will be optional for all locations on campus excluding: classrooms, labs and instructional areas. • Areas that are considered close contact environments, such as COVID-19 testing areas, the counseling center and health center, will still require masks. • Occupants of private offices will be allowed to choose if visitors must be masked or unmasked. • Manuel said in the email, “While many people feel safe removing their masks in public settings, please recognize that there are others who may not have reached that same level of comfort, for a variety of reasons. I ask that you be respectful of them and their decision to remain masked.” Capacity: • UIndy will operate at full capacity, excluding classrooms, labs and other instructional areas. These areas are excluded so as to not disturb current class schedules. • If infection rates do not increase, those areas will move to full capacity by semester’s end. Vaccinations: • The current vaccination policy will remain in place. Manuel said that recommendations from the CDC, other public health officials and state legislation will be monitored if changes need to be made in the future. • The current policy is that those with on campus activities must be fully vaccinated with a booster or provide eligible exemptions. The campus community is still urged to stay home if they are feeling ill and to seek out testing when they feel unwell to know if it is COVID-19, according to Manuel’s email. Testing will still be provided on campus and those with vaccination exemptions are still to test weekly to follow the current vaccination policy. Manuel said that the impact of COVID-19 on UIndy’s community will continue to be monitored and the policies will be adjusted as needed.


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March 9, 2022 | The Reflector by reflectoruindy - Issuu