Dear HIFA2015 and CHILD2015 colleagues,
Today is International
Antibiotics Awareness Day. The message below is forwarded from the forum
of the International Federation of Medical Students Associations
(IFMSA), which is a longstanding official HIFA Supporting Organisation.
"Inappropriate use of antibiotics has become a serious
threat to public health globally". It is a major cause of needless death
and suffering today, and threatens death and suffering on an
unimaginable scale in the future. A major contributing factor is lack of
access to relibable, unbiased information for prescribers and
consumers. Information is either absent, or is restricted to biased
marketing materials from big pharma.
I have invited Students Targeting Antibiotics Resistance Today (START) and IFMSA members
worldwide to join us to promote a future where every prescriber and user
has access to reliable, independent information on medicines, including
and especially antibiotics.
A suggested starting point would be
to make independent, reliable publications such as the British National Formulary freely available to all on the internet.
Best wishes,
Neil
-----
Today, Nov 18th is International Antibiotics Awareness day.
What
is the problem? Antibiotic resistance is now an everyday problem in
hospitals across the globe. The selection and spread of resistant
bacteria in hospitals is a major patient safety issue. Infections with
antibiotic resistant bacteria increase morbidity and mortality, as well
as the length of stay in hospitals. Inappropriate use of antibiotics may
increasingly cause patients to become colonised or infected with
resistant bacteria. There are few new antibiotics in the development
pipeline. As resistance in bacteria grows it will become more difficult
to treat infection and this affects patient care
Why do we need
an Antibiotic Awareness Day? The inappropriate use of antibiotics has
become a serious threat to public health globally, Taking antibiotics
for the wrong reasons or incorrectly causes bacteria to develop
resistance against antibiotic treatments with a risk of rendering
antibiotics ineffective in the future.
What is the aim of
Antibiotic Awareness Day? The aim of European Antibiotic Awareness Day
is to emphasis the importance of taking antibiotics responsibly by
putting an end to unnecessary use of antibiotics and encouraging people
to follow their doctor’s instructions on how to take antibiotics in the
appropriate way. The purpose of the day is to build on and reinforce the
success of national campaigns on responsible use of antibiotics
Why
is responsible use of antibiotics important? Keeping antibiotics
effective is everyone’s responsibility. Responsible use of antibiotics
can help reverse the growing trend of antimicrobial resistance and keep
antibiotics effective for the use of future generations. On this basis,
it is appropriate to inform the public, health professionals and carers
of the sick, elderly and children about when and how to take antibiotics
responsibly.
How can I get involved? Here are several ideas on
how to help support this initiative: Spread the word Talk about the
International Antibiotic Awareness Day and its significance with your
friends, family, colleagues and your Patients Make use of the materials
by advertising the International Antibiotic Awareness Day in
newsletters, on websites, in the media and on the Internet, by inserting
a link on your website, in your e-mail signature or in your blog.
Organise and participate in activities.
LET'S SAVE ANTIBIOTICS FOR THE NEXT GENERATION.
On behalf of Students Targeting Antibiotics Resistance Today (START) Team
Cecilia Kallberg, Jannie Dressler, Oluwasaanu Bunmi Michael.
My source: HIFA2015
orcid.org/0000-0002-0192-8965
