World antibiotic awareness week, Nov. 16-22

From a press release:

Antibiotic resistance is a growing threat to global health. It can affect anyone, of any age, in any country – especially with the ease and frequency with which people travel. Antibiotics are medicines used to prevent and treat bacterial infections. Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in response to the use of these medicines.

“Mission Health takes this threat seriously because of the potential consequences for our patients and our community,” said Chris DeRienzo, MD, MPP, Mission Health’s Chief Patient Safety Officer. “When first-line antibiotics do not work infections often last longer, cause more severe illness and require more intense treatment with medications that cause more side effects. Some resistant infections may even be deadly.”

Increased misuse of antibiotics accelerates resistance in organisms which cause infections. This makes it difficult to find antibiotics that are capable of treating the resistant infections. One study estimated that more than half of antibiotics prescribed for patients who visit a clinic in the U.S. are inappropriate. These patients are most commonly seeking care for respiratory infections that are caused by viruses instead of bacteria (1).

Antibiotic resistance in children is of particular concern because they have the highest rates of antibiotic use and often have fewer antibiotic choices since some antibiotics cannot be safely given to children.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared Nov. 16-22 as World Antibiotic Awareness Week. The theme this year is “Antibiotics: Handle with Care” and is meant to increase awareness of global antibiotic resistance and to encourage best practices among the general public, healthcare workers and policy makers to avoid the further emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance.

Antibiotics should be used to treat bacterial infections, and only when prescribed by a medical professional. However, every individual must also practice behavior that helps stop the spread of infections, including keeping vaccinations up-to-date, regular and frequent hand washing, and good food hygiene.

Some tips to follow:

·       Only use antibiotics when prescribed by a certified health professional

·       Always take the full prescription, even if you feel better

·       Never use left-over antibiotics

·       Never share antibiotics with others

For more information, visit http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/antibiotic-resistance/en/.

About Mission Health

Mission Health, based in Asheville, North Carolina, is the state’s sixth-largest health system and the region’s only not-for-profit, independent community hospital system governed and managed exclusively in western North Carolina. Mission Health has been recognized as one of the nation’s Top 15 Health Systems 2012-2015 by Truven Health Analytics, formerly Thomson Reuters. Mission Health is the only health system in the nation to receive this recognition four years in a row, and the only health system in North Carolina to achieve Top 15 recognition.

Mission Health, which traces its roots in the region back to 1885, operates six hospitals, numerous outpatient and surgery centers, post-acute care provider CarePartners, long-term acute care provider Asheville Specialty Hospital and the region’s only dedicated Level II trauma center. Its medical staff consists of more than 1,000 physicians and is certified in more than 50 medical specialties and sub-specialties. Mission Health has seven Centers of Excellence: Cancer, Heart, Mission Children’s Hospital, Neurosciences, Orthopedics, Trauma and Women’s Health. Mission Hospital, located in Asheville, is the system’s flagship hospital and is licensed for 763 beds. It is the regional referral center for tertiary and quaternary care. It also includes Mission Children’s Hospital – the region’s only children’s hospital. Other Mission Health member hospitals include Angel Medical Center in Franklin, Blue Ridge Regional Hospital in Spruce Pine, Highlands-Cashiers Hospital in Highlands, McDowell Hospital in Marion and Transylvania Regional Hospital in Brevard. With approximately 10,700 employees and 2,000 volunteers, Mission Health is dedicated to improving the health and wellness of the people of western North Carolina. For more information, please visit mission-health.org or @MissionHealthNC.

(1)      Shapiro DJ, Hicks LA, Pavia AT, Hersh AL. Antibiotic prescribing for adults in ambulatory care in the USA, 2007-09. J Antimicrob Chemother. 2014;69(1):234-40.