Bhubaneswar: With more number of asymptomatic and mild symptomatic Covid patients adopting home isolation, the state government has initiated steps to start Favipiravir therapy for such patients.
At a high-level meeting with doctors and experts Monday, Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy asked officials to start Favipiravir therapy at door steps of patients under home isolation.
“Covid-19 is an evolving crisis. The new clinical input and empirical evidence about the pandemic has proved the effectiveness of Favipiravir treatment as an antiviral therapy. It will save the patients in home isolation from getting serious. Many doctors and virus experts have posited that the medicine will be helpful in Covid management to a large extent,” Tripathy said.
The CS warned that medicine needs to be administered with proper advice and precaution. He asked a team of experienced doctors to advise patients in home isolation over audio visual media about this therapy. The patients will take the therapy under the advice and guidance of physicians.
Tripathy instructed the health & family welfare department to widely circulate the SOP on use of oral Favipiravir among doctors. The department was asked to train members of the rapid response teams (RRTs) for assessing suitability of a patient in home isolation. As of now nearly 80 per cent of positive Covid patients have opted for home isolation.
Additional Chief Secretary Health & Family Welfare PK Mohapatra advised the members of RRTs to properly explain a patient and his/her care giver or family member about use of oral Favipiravir, its side effects, precautions and actions to be taken by them after initiation of the therapy.
The therapy would start only after informed consent of the patient. The RRTs would deliver medicines, detail information sheet, ‘dos and don’ts’ along with ‘how and whom to report reactions/progress about patient’s condition’ at door step of patients. On event of any major adverse reactions, the RRTs would coordinate shifting of the patient to appropriate Covid care facility.