World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week 2024

Resistance to antimicrobials [AMR] & antibiotics occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites no longer respond to antimicrobial agents. As a result of drug resistance, antibiotics and other antimicrobial agents become ineffective and infections become difficult or impossible to treat, increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness and death.

The World AMR Awareness Week (WAAW) is a global campaign to raise awareness and understanding of AMR and promote best practices to reduce the emergence and spread of drug-resistant infections. WAAW runs from 18 – 24 November

Antibiotics are no longer routinely used to treat infections.

This is because –

many infections are caused by viruses, so antibiotics are not effective

antibiotics are often unlikely to speed up the healing process and can cause side effects

the more antibiotics are used to treat trivial conditions, the more likely they are to become ineffective for treating more serious conditions

Both the NHS and health organisations across the world are trying to reduce the use of antibiotics, especially for health problems that are not serious. For example, we will not routinely prescribe antibiotics for – chest infections, ear infections in children or sore throats.