August 07, 2017
The Question & What We Found: In an Expert Commentary in Clinical Microbiology & Infection, CDDEP Director Ramanan Laxminarayan and colleagues make the case that international staffing standards are required to estimate global human resources needs for stewardship efforts, and a sustainable source of funding is needed to build and strengthen stewardship teams. The authors also point to a need to broaden stewardship to community and nursing facilities, where most antibiotics are prescribed.
Why It Matters: Antibiotic stewardship (AS) requires multidisciplinary teams to combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria in healthcare and community settings. Standards for staffing antibiotic stewardship teams and associated funding estimates have been developed in only a handful of countries, all high-income, and only for hospitals. AS teams in resource-rich settings are often multidisciplinary, including adequately trained infectious diseases specialists, clinical microbiologists, and pharmacists.
