COVID treatments available at WRH

REGIONAL — The new monoclonal antibody therapy and the new Pfizer COVID pill have both made their way into the region and a news conference last week by Windsor Regional Hospital spelled out the criteria for getting the drugs.

Paxlovid is an anti-viral pill for high risk patients with mild to moderate COVID symptoms, while Sotrovimab is an IV antibody infusion for patients in that same category.

They are both outpatient treatments and are not available or effective for in-patients.

The region has limited supply of both drugs and it is not known how much will be available in the near future.

For now, the criteria set out by the Ontario Science Table calls for patients to be at high risk for severe illness, such as immunocompromised individuals aged 18 and over regardless of vaccine status, unvaccinated individuals aged 60 and over, unvaccinated First Nation, Inuit and Métis individuals aged 50 and over, or unvaccinated individuals aged 50 and over with one or more risk factors.

Treatment with either drug must be done within five days of symptom onset to be effective.

Medical officials stress that this is not an alternative to getting vaccinated.

If you believe you qualify for the above therapies, you should book an appointment at the WRH Ouellette Campus Clinical Assessment Centre and bring a list of your medications and any important medical conditions to share with health care providers.

To book an appointment online visit wrh.on.ca/OnlineBooking.

You can also book an appointment by calling 519-973-4443. Phones are answered Monday - Friday, between 8 am and 4 pm.