The Tribune

By TANYA SMITH CARTWRIGHT

tsmith-cartwright@tribunemedia.net

LOCAL physicians are disappointed with the Public Hospitals Authority for allegedly ignoring a COVID-19 treatment proposal they sent months ago that they say would convert the infection from being a potentially debilitating and deadly disease, to a mild illness of short duration.

Doctors Sy Pierre and Juliette Hepburn sent a proposal to the PHA and the Ministry of Health for consideration to use “photodynamic therapy” and “ozone therapy” on patients suffering from COVID-19.

The following is an excerpt from the proposal explaining how the therapy reportedly works: “Photodynamic therapy has a solid track record and is firmly established as a method of effectively targeting infection. Improvements in this technique over the decades have facilitated a much broader scope of action, including treatment of dangerous viruses.

“The data and publications included in this submission clearly demonstrate that the Medlouxx PPR device and protocol provides a highly effective means of treating COVID- 19 with a safe, portable, non-invasive approach.

“In spite of advanced age and the presence of comorbidities in many of the patients treated, the majority experienced mild to moderate symptoms with notably reduced rates of hospital and ICU admissions, need for ventilator equipment – and deaths.”

The Tribune reached out to Dr Pierre, a consultant physician and anaesthetist, who noted that the therapies are not new to the health industry.

Dr Pierre said: “Please note that all the therapies referred to have been available here prior to the COVID-19 pandemic as these therapies are ‘broad spectrum’ antimicrobial therapies that are safe and have been used for years worldwide.

“We also sent scientific evidence of the therapies to the physicians in charge of giving the government advice on the management of this pandemic, including both the previous and present ministers of health. However, we received either no response or minimal interest.”

Attempts to obtain comment from PHA officials proved fruitless.

However, when asked about the matter outside Cabinet yesterday, Minister of Health Renward Wells said officials follow World Health Organisation protocols for treating COVID patients.

“There is a protocol and the Ministry of Health and the Public Hospitals Authority comes under the ambit of the Ministry of Health and they are duty bound to follow the WHO protocol,” Mr Wells said.

“I’ve heard all kinds of suggestions from the health community that comes to the Ministry of Health, directly to the minister. I’ve had doctors approach me on the street and say ‘you should use Ivermectin.’ Some of them say, ‘you should use Vitamin D’ – a plethora of things. At the end of the day, I could get up and say, cerasee (bush medicine) works. I would love to know who those individuals are who made the recommendations and what recommendations they made.”

Although Dr Pierre said he sent the proposal to the former and current ministers of health, Mr Wells never confirmed or denied receiving it.

In his letter to the PHA, which was obtained by this newspaper, Dr Pierre said he and Dr Hepburn wished to offer their services to the Public Hospitals Authority to provide information and expertise on two promising treatments for COVID-19 infections – antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) and ozone therapy (OT). He also offered to assist in the implementation of these therapies to combat COVID-19 infections.

Dr Pierre, in his letter, also asked for an audience with the PHA board of directors. This never happened.

The letter read: “Together, aPDT and OT offer easily implemented, relatively inexpensive therapeutic modalities with beneficial outcomes in both early and late COVID-19 intervention. There is substantial evidence that aPDT effectively inactivates a number of dangerous viruses. One of our principals, Dr Juliette Hepburn, is currently involved in a study to further assess the efficacy of aPDT in the early treatment of COVID-19.

“A similar aPDT therapy has recently been granted breakthrough status by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), validating this approach. Likewise, OT has proven to be a broad-spectrum antiviral agent and was used effectively in a small number of patients in Sierra Leone to treat the Ebola virus. It has shown evidence of efficacy in elderly patients made critically ill by COVID-19 infection.

“We would like the opportunity to meet with the board of the Public Hospitals Authority to present further information on these treatments and to discuss possible implementation to treat both early and late-stage COVID-19 infections.”