Antibiotic resistance is among the greatest public health threats today, leading to an estimated 2 million infections and 23,000 deaths per year in the United States¹. At least 30 percent of outpatient antibiotic prescriptions in the United States are unnecessary².
As of today, over 422 outpatient provider organizations in our region have committed to become good stewards of antibiotics as part of the Antibiotic Stewardship Initiative, facilitated by the Great Plains Quality Innovation Network. Participants include:
- 186 Kansas Outpatient Providers
- 124 Nebraska Outpatient Providers
- 59 North Dakota Outpatient Providers
- 53 South Dakota Outpatient Providers
Committed partners are working together to discuss and spread the principles of antibiotic stewardship and benefit from educational and collaborative sessions led by quality improvement experts. Opportunities for networking, learning and sharing across organizations are available. Great Plains QIN offers technical assistance to aid in implementation. Partners include community health centers, emergency departments, pharmacies, physician offices, public health clinics, outpatient clinics and urgent care centers.
Antibiotic stewardship is the effort to measure antibiotic prescribing, improve practices to prescribe antibiotics only when needed, improve misdiagnoses or delayed diagnoses leading to underuse and to ensure the right drug, dose and duration when an antibiotic is needed. The goal of stewardship is to maximize the benefits of antibiotics while minimizing harm to individual persons and communities. Establishing effective antibiotic stewardship interventions can protect patients and improve clinical outcomes.
“Many people go to their medical provider with a viral illness expecting to receive an antibiotic to make them feel better, but don’t understand that the antibiotic they seek has absolutely no impact on a virus. Antibiotics cause one out of five emergency department visits for Adverse Drug Events (ADEs). The goal of this initiative is to implement strategies outlined in the CDC Core Elements of Outpatient Antibiotic Stewardship with the expectation that we can reduce the number of unnecessary antibiotics prescribed and reduce some of the potential harm caused by them. We are not saying that antibiotics are bad, but that we all (consumers and prescribers) need to be better stewards of the use of them,” stated Great Plains QIN antibiotic stewardship regional task lead and project manager, Nadyne Hagmeier, RN.
We will be sharing much more on this important topic in the weeks ahead leading up to Antibiotic Awareness Week. As a healthcare community, we can start planning now. This year’s theme is Seek advice from a qualified healthcare professional before taking antibiotics.
For more information, including education, tools, best practice strategies and evidence-based resources, visit our Web site.
1. CDC. Antibiotic resistance threats in the United States, 2013 [internet]. Atlanta, GA: US Department of Health and Human Services, CDC; 2013.
2. Fleming-Dutra KE, Hersh AL, Shapiro DJ, et al. Prevalence of inappropriate antibiotic prescriptions among U.S. ambulatory care visits, 2010-2011. JAMA 2016;315:1864-73.