“Right now, we are essentially in the epicenter…”

As Covid-19 cases continue to climb in the state, the Texas Division of Emergency Management recently set up an Infusion Center for monoclonal antibody therapy in Austin. In just four days, Dr. Rashid Chotani and his team set up this facility to treat out-patient Covid cases, to “…Decrease the burden on the health care system by treating patients so they don’t have to go to the hospital and don’t occupy ICU beds. We want to decrease the mortality rate,” shares Chotani.
He says temperature monitors will be placed at the entrance where patients are treated and in the trailer where the health providers will be coming and going and where the supplies will be held. While the health care workers will be in full PPE, Chotani says he wants to ensure they aren’t running a fever and will serve as another reminder for patients & providers to mask-up.

Early Wednesday morning, Chotani gave CAN-AM a behind the scenes look at the operation. Chotani, who’s helped set up similar operations in other states, says patients must be recommended by their doctors before getting an appointment to come to the therapy center in Travis County. Dr. Chotani says the entire process should take about two and a half hours: thirty minutes or less for paperwork, the infusion therapy takes an hour and one hour of observation before patients are released to return home.