HJNO May/Jun 2020

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS I  MAY / JUN 2020 41 For weekly eNews updates and to read the journal online, visit HealthcareJournalNO.com Another Tulanian who is sending out crucial coronavirus information on a daily basis is Clay Christian, a business development officer at the School of Medicine, who oversees the production and dissemination of the SOM COVID19 Daily Digest, an e-newsletter that contains scientific literature (published papers and preprints) and the news (scientific and general news sources) updates about COVID19. LSUHealth NO Enrolls First Patient in COVID-19 Clinical Trial LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine has enrolled its first patient in a randomized clin- ical trial to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine alone, and in combination, as a treatment for COVID-19. “We may enroll up to 600 patients with moder- ate to severe COVID-19,” said Meredith Clement, MD, assistant professor in the Section of Infec- tious Diseases at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine and the trial’s principal investigator. Hospitalized patients at University Medical Center, one of LSU Health New Orleans’ teach- ing hospitals, will be enrolled in one of the study’s three arms – treatment with hydroxychloroquine alone, treatment with hydroxychloroquine + azithromycin, or supportive care, which is cur- rently the standard of care. There is currently no approved treatment for COVID-19. Neither hydroxychloroquine nor azithromycin are approved by the FDA for treat- ment of COVID-19 in the United States. Hydroxy- chloroquine is a medication currently approved for the treatment of malaria, certain forms of lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Azithromycin is an antibiotic currently approved for the treatment of many bacterial infections. “There is some limited evidence that these medications hold promise in shortening the dis- ease course and decreasing the viral load – the amount of virus in respiratory samples,” added Clement. “But we haven’t really had any reliable data to date.” “We will closely monitor the participants,” says Yussef Bennani, MD, assistant professor in the Section of Infectious Diseases at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, and co-prin- cipal investigator. “The patients’ well-being is paramount. If treating them requires any adjust- ments to their care, which could include removing the patient from the study, we will work to provide them with the highest-quality care. Participants can also withdraw at any point.” Possible benefits to participants include an improvement in their symptoms of COVID- 19 infection and a shorter recovery time. How- ever, there may be no benefit to an individual participant. Risks to participants include some known side effects of the medications that will be explained before the patients consent to participate. “We’ll be looking at side effects and out- comes,” Clement explained, “and we’ll be doing regular interim analyses. If it looks like the sup- portive care arm is not equivalently effective to medication, we’ll drop that arm, so patients won’t receive supportive care only. We’re really trying to find an answer as to how to best treat our patients.” The research team also includes Jyotsna Fulo- ria, MD, at University Medical Center. “Rigorous scientific research will provide the data we need to make appropriate treatment decisions for COVID-19,” said Steve Nelson, MD, dean of LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine. “We are so grateful to Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and Senator Fred Mills, Jr. for obtaining the medications we need to con- duct this vital clinical trial,” says Larry Hollier, MD, chancellor of LSU Health New Orleans. LSU Assists Local Health Organizations with Creation of Coronavirus Test Lab As COVID-19 began to spread in Baton Rouge, researchers at the LSU System, including LSU, the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, and the LSU Health Sciences Center, began working with phy- sicians and administrators from local healthcare organizations to support Louisiana in its COVID- 19 response. Working with Baton Rouge Clinic, Baton Rouge General Hospital, Our Lady of the Lake Hospital, and Woman’s Hospital, LSU is pro- cessing samples collected by these local health organizations. The “River Road Testing Lab” is housed in LSU’s School of Veterinary Medicine, and is helping to provide a faster turnaround for test results. Training Series Prepares Providers, Public to Offer Mental Health Support for Those in COVID-19 Isolation As thousands of Louisiana residents with COVID-19 diagnoses and symptoms care for themselves in isolation, they may experience anx- iety, depression or other mental health concerns. In collaboration with the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) Office of Behavioral Health (OBH), the Louisiana Affiliate of Mental Health America, the Mental Health Association for Greater Baton Rouge (MHA), is partnering with Louisiana Health- care Connections, a Medicaid health plan, to pro- vide free clinical trainings to mental health pro- viders and to the general public to prepare them to address the needs of those living in isolation. “Social isolation and loneliness can increase feelings of depression and anxiety, and lead to negative health consequences for those with chronic mental health conditions,” said Melissa Silva, MHA executive director. “We want to reduce these risks by increasing the availability of appropriate mental health support for those who need it, and making this training available at no cost to providers and to the public is allow- ing us to do that.” The MHA worked with Louisiana Healthcare Connections to utilize the health plan’s exist- ing training infrastructure and team of clini- cally trained educators to provide the train- ing series. The web-based series features six 15-minute courses. The trainings are accessible via any mobile smart device, and are available on-demand to allow clinicians to complete the courses at their own pace, on their own sched- ules. The courses are designed for peer sup- port specialists and mental health rehabilitation (MHR) providers, but are available to the public. The skills and information may be useful to any- one facing or supporting someone with anxiety, grief or depression in this time. The training series includes the following courses: • COVID-19: An Overview • Helping the Helper • Effective Communication