TCI Hospitals exploring new COVID therapeutics in consult with PHE; confirms Dexamethasone as effective  

By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, December 11, 2021 – The Turks and Caicos Islands Hospital is not backing down in the fight against COVID-19 and based on the country’s rate of infection the hospital is succeeding; Dexamethasone has been administered in treatment of coronavirus patients since July 2020 but the therapeutics options may be expanding soon.

Dr. Denise Braithwaite-Tennant, CEO of the TCI Hospital confirmed they are working to keep the infection rate low through a mix of research, best practices, and state-of-the-art medical treatments.

Magnetic Media obtained an update on treatment options from the Hospitals in early November.  The hospital revealed that in a bid to find effective ways to combat COVID-19’s severe side effects it had been researching new, overseas-based, therapeutic treatments.

One of these treatments, the hospital had said, was Molnupiravir. The drug, which was approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in the UK, had been found effective in the early stages of COVID-19 infection for at-risk individuals.

Despite the positive outlook, the TCI Hospital maintains that they would not rush into treatment. Representatives said the hospital’s Drugs and Therapeutics advisory committee would use “All available guidance information from multiple sources such as the MHRA, Public Health England, Pan American Health Organization, the World Health Organization and others to make timely recommendations for safe, effective, and evidenced-based COVID-19 treatment protocols.”

In a subsequent interview on December 6th, the CEO revealed that being unsatisfied with the amount of data available on Molnupiravir it had requested a meeting with Public Health England (PHE) to get their input.

In the meantime under advisement from the FDA and MHRA they have continued to administer Dexamethasone which they say has been very effective in patients, has a good safety profile, and has minimal side effects.

We have seen very good outcomes  with this drug and our approach with the majority of our patients has been successful, leading to safe discharge,” said Dr. Braithwaite-Tennant, CEO of the TCI Hospitals.

With a recovery percentage of roughly 98 per cent of infected individuals up to December 6th, the statement rings true. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly 350 thousand COVID-19 tests have been administered in the TCI. Of that number, there have been 3,107 positive cases and 3,055 recoveries.

At this time, no one is hospitalised with the virus.

The hospital says its everyday staff members have also been committed to the fight against COVID with a total of 96 per cent of them being vaccinated so far.

The Hospital is set to continue on its current trajectory of keeping infections low and recoveries high and implores TCI Islanders who want to help fight COVID-19 along with the frontline staff to do so by giving blood which can be lifesaving for all patients including those with COVID-19.

Interested Islanders can donate blood to the National Blood Bank.