What we know about COVID 19 has changed since the virus first arrived in the USA. The methods for treating it have changed as well.  Dr. Doug Kasper, an Infectious Disease physician with OSF healthcare says providers have gotten better at identifying patients who may be at risk and recognizing symptoms of COVID19 quicker. 

Kasper says that physicians have started using convalescent plasma, saying that the benefits outweigh the risks. Screening for pathogens goes a long way towards health and safety.

Kasper says that originally the methods used were to try to prevent patients from ending up on ventilators. The new strategy involves proning—putting patients on their stomach.

Kasper says that they have not seen the benefits of hydroxychloroquine.

Looking into the future of COVID-19, Doctors are now starting to use an anti-viral medication called Remdesivir.

The medicine changes on a regular basis, but doctors are working hard to stay at the forefront of the pandemic.