Dr SanjanaKattera (in picture), a corona warrior who was part of the Oxford Covid-19 vaccine trial team, is ‘Coorg Person of the Year, 2020’.

Coorg-born Dr Sanjana was also involved in treating Covid-affected children. A passionate paediatrician, she was part of the vaccine trial team at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in the United Kingdom.

Dr Sanjanawas selected ‘Coorg Person of the Year’ in a poll conducted by www.coorgtourisminfo.com, Kodagu’s first news portal, promoted by senior journalist P.T. Bopanna. 

According to reports, Dr Sanjana servedCovid positive patients selflessly by risking her life, especially when PPE suits were in short supply initially.

Oxford-AstraZeneca’s covid-19 vaccine is considered as one of the most advanced candidates and is close to reporting early results of a late-stage clinical trial. In India, the Oxford vaccine’s trials are being carried out by the Serum Institute of India.All hopes of Indians are focussed on the efficacy of the vaccine which is best suited to Indian conditions. 

The Oxford Vaccine Centre’s covid-19 vaccine trial is being run by the Jenner Institute and Oxford Vaccine Group. 

She worked with phase I/II of the trial with the age group 18-55 years by initially screening and recruiting patients as part of the eligibility criteria. 

The corona warrior had a tough competition for the ‘Coorg Person of the Year’ title from M. A. Ganapathy, IPS, director-general of the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS).

Dr. Sanjana, daughter of Dr. Suresh Katteraand Smitha Suresh, did her schooling in the United World College South East Asia (UWCSEA) in Singapore. 

She studied medicine atthe University of Edinburgh in the UK.  After completing her medicine, she specialised in paediatrics in one of the top Paediatrics hospitals in UK, and is currently training in NHS, Liverpool. She will be completing her Membership of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (MRCPCH)early next year.