CHI Memorial is welcoming members of the Tennessee Air and Army National Guard, who will work in its monoclonal antibody injection clinic. Nine guardsmen and women will provide administrative and clinical support in the clinic for at least two weeks.
“They are helping more than people with COVID.
Because of their presence, we have nurses and staff who can go back to caring for cancer and heart patients. The guardsmen are impacting many more lives than they realize,” explained Deb Moore, administrator, CHI Memorial Hospital Hixson. “We are so excited they are here and are grateful for their service to our hospital, staff, and patients, and our community.”
CHI Memorial has administered more than 1,900 monoclonal antibody treatments to outpatients since November 2020. With the recent opening of the new injection clinic, CHI Memorial has expanded its capacity and is now able to provide monoclonal antibody treatment to up to 50 people daily.
Monoclonal antibody treatments are laboratory-made proteins that attach to parts of the virus in the body and help the immune system respond more quickly. The treatment is used to treat mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in people at high risk of developing severe COVID-19 that could result in hospitalization or death. The goal of this therapy is to help prevent hospitalizations, reduce the amount of virus, and lessen the severity of symptoms.
Learn more about monoclonal antibody treatment on the Tennessee Department of Health’s website.