Mediclinic Recognises Antimicrobial Awareness Week

Posted on 13 November 2020

“Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is a slow tsunami that threatens to undo a century of medical progress,” states Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO has declared that AMR is one of the top 10 global public health threats facing humanity.

In the past, the focus was mainly on antibiotics – which are antibacterial medicines – but the focus has now expanded to include all antimicrobials. Antimicrobials are medicines used to prevent and treat infections in humans, animals and plants and include antibiotic, antiviral, antifungal and antiparasitic medication.

What is antimicrobial resistance?

Antimicrobial Resistance occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites change over time and no longer respond to medicines, making infections harder to treat and increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness and death.

As a result of drug resistance, antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines become ineffective and infections become increasingly difficult or impossible to treat.

Antimicrobials: Handle with Care

According to the WHO, antimicrobials are a precious resource that we cannot continue to take for granted. Antimicrobial  resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health today. Without urgent action, the world is headed for a ‘post-antimicrobial era’ in which common infections and minor injuries that have been treatable for decades can once again kill, and the benefits of advanced medical treatments such as chemotherapy and major surgery will be lost.

With this in mind, Mediclinic supports the World Health Organization and their global campaign ‘Antimicrobials: Handle with Care’. It speaks to the need for everyone, everywhere to play their part in preserving the effectiveness of antimicrobials. This implies that if needed, to only prescribe and dispense the right antimicrobial at the right dose for the right duration.

How has COVID-19 impacted the use of antimicrobials?

As part of our antimicrobial stewardship efforts, Mediclinic routinely collects antimicrobial utilisation data as per the WHO. The data extracted during the current pandemic allowed the team to differentiate between patients with SARS-CoV-2 infections and those without.

It was found that the novelty and lack of clear treatment guidelines led to many different prescribing practices, either for primary treatment of the viral disease or initial treatment for suspected bacterial infections.

According to Andriette van Jaarsveld, Clinical Pharmacy Specialist at Mediclinic, “Overall, antimicrobial utilisation measured in comparison to patient days was on average 16% higher than the same period the previous year. The utilisation rate was the highest in July 2020, which coincided with the peak of the pandemic in most of our hospitals.”

We believe that this highlights the importance of multidisciplinary antimicrobial stewardship rounds and specifically the critical role that the clinical / ward pharmacist evaluations play together with adherence to infection prevention and control practices and clear treatment guidelines in reducing inappropriate antimicrobial use.

Did you know?

• Antimicrobial resistance can affect anyone, of any age, in any country.
• Antimicrobial resistance occurs naturally, but misuse of antimicrobials in humans and animals is accelerating the process.
• A growing number of infections — such as pneumonia and tuberculosis — are becoming harder to treat as the antimicrobials used to treat them become less effective.
• Antimicrobial resistance leads to longer hospital stays, higher medical costs and increased mortality.