Gujarat: Central team discusses COVID-19 treatment protocol

A special team of doctors including AIIMS director Randeep Guleria, ICMR director-general Dr Balram Bhargav, NITI Aayog member Dr Vinod Paul and Additional Secretary in the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Arti Ahuja held meeting with officials and doctors of Gujarat, discussing on COVID-19 treatment protocol through video conference.

Ahmedabad (Gujarat): On the second day of a two-day visit to Gujarat, a Central team held discussions with officials and doctors from across the state on COVID-19 treatment protocol on Saturday, an official said.

The team of AIIMS director Randeep Guleria, ICMR director-general Dr Balram Bhargav, NITI Aayog member Dr Vinod Paul and Additional Secretary in the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Arti Ahuja was in the state to review the pandemic situation.

"Today they held a meeting with collectors, municipal commissioners and district development officers across all the districts through video conference," said Health Commissioner J P Shivahare.

"Detailed presentations were made by the district administrations of Rajkot and Vadodara. The team members also held discussions with doctors from private and government sectors regarding treatment protocol," he said.

Dr Guleria and other experts also guided the use of tocilizumab injection to treat COVID-19, he said.

"They said it should be administered only on the recommendation of doctors who can decide it based on test indicators," Shivahare said.

The injection would be made available to all the patients who need it, the state government has decided, he said, adding that Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and his deputy Nitin Patel were monitoring its availability daily.

"Availability of the injection will increase, and it should be used rationally. The decision on who should be given the injection should be left to expert doctors," he said.

The Central team had reviewed the situation in the worst-affected Ahmedabad and Surat districts on Friday and praised the state government's efforts to contain the virus.

It left for Delhi after Saturday's meeting.

(PTI report)