This story is from June 5, 2020

Kolkata: PWD staffer donates plasma for clinical trial on plasma therapy on Covid-19 patients

Somnath Das, a PWD staff at Medical College Hospital came forward to donate his plasma on Friday. The plasma will be used for the clinical trial on the efficacy of plasma therapy on Covid-19 patients. This was the third such donation for the clinical trial on convalescent plasma therapy.
Kolkata: PWD staffer donates plasma for clinical trial on plasma therapy on Covid-19 patients
The plasma donation at Medical College Hospital
KOLKATA: Somnath Das, a PWD staffer at Medical College Hospital came forward to donate his plasma on Friday. The plasma will be used for the clinical trial on the efficacy of plasma therapy on Covid-19 patients. This was the third such donation for the clinical trial on convalescent plasma therapy.
The head electrician had been infected while working in the hospital that had many suspected Covid patients.
Since MCH was yet to be a Covid hospital he was shifted to MR Bangur Hospital from where he was discharged on April 17.
"I learnt about plasma therapy during my treatment in MR Bangur Hospital. It will be a wonderful thing if plasma from a recovered patient will help in the treatment of the covid infected. I hope more people come forward to donate plasma," said Das whose plasma was taken at the immunohematology and blood transfusion department of MCH.
The clinical trial is a joint project of West Bengal government and Council of Scientific & Industrial Research. While immunohematology and blood transfusion department of MCH is looking after the plasma donation is being done at MCHK part, the clinical trial will take place at Infectious Diseases and Beliaghata General Hospital.
"The donor is an absolutely lay person, his courage and motivation is exemplary," said Dipyaman Ganguly, principal scientist and associate professor at the Translational Research Unit of Excellence of Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Kolkata who is also the principal investigator of the clinical trial.
The first donor was a 23-year-old management student from Habra who was tested positive on her return from Scotland while a doctor from Tata Medical Centre, a cancer specialty hospital donated his plasma on Wednesday. The doctor also got infected during his line of duty.
With plasma from three donors being at the repository at MCH, the clinical trial team said they can start the trial anytime as and when they find a matching recipient.
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