World Antibiotic Awareness Week; help patients get smart about antibiotic use

World Antibiotic Awareness Week, November 16-22, 2015, aims to increase awareness of global antibiotic resistance and to encourage best practices among the general public, health workers and policy makers to avoid the further emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance.

In connection with that, we have found an interesting video the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued, in which it suggest to pharmacists how to encourage the appropriate use of antibiotics.

The FDA has teamed up with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to spread this message to the pharmacists.
Lieutenant Zachary Oleszczuk from FDA’s Division of Drug Information spoke about how the pharmacists can help patients get smart about antibiotic use by teaching three key messages:

• Antibiotics are drugs that fight infections caused by bacteria,
• Antibiotics are powerful drugs, but they are not the cure for all that ails,
• Antibiotics are not effective against viral infections like the common cold, most sore throats, and the flu.

Listen what Lieutenant Zachary Oleszczuk, had to say about how pharmacists can help their patients get smart about antibiotic use.

Source: FDA