Ochsner has administered about 9,700 monoclonal antibody treatments to COVID patients across New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and the Northshore and is doing about 300 to 400 treatments a week in Lafayette.
Ochsner CEO Warner Thomas said the treatments have been highly effective so far.
“Of the 9,700 patients only 27 of them have been admitted to the hospital after getting the monoclonal antibodies,” said Thomas. “So that is a really positive thing, but the best thing is to get vaccinated.”
Ochsner Chief Medical Officer Dr. Robert Hart said they’ve received additional help from paramedics to running their infusion suites and can now offer the treatment within a day or two of qualification.
“With the addition of the paramedics, it has allowed us to really do another 100 a day, so we have been able to really work that queue down,” said Hart.
System Hospital Quality Director Dr. Sandra Kemmerly said the treatment is a passive immunotherapy that can prevent hospitalizations and deaths but is not a permanent solution.
“It does not take the place of patients needing vaccination after the fact, so they will have to be delayed three months after receipt of that monoclonal antibody,” said Kemmerly. “It is absolutely not curative, and it is not sustainable.”