From families and couples to nurses and dentists, everyone has a role to play in being antibiotic-wise. That’s the message of this year’s campaign led by BC Centre for Disease Control’s Community Antimicrobial Stewardship Program for World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week.
In April, the stewardship program began working on the second phase of its
antimicrobial resistance campaign by recruiting members of the public to participate in unscripted discussions on antibiotic use. These discussions were filmed and packaged into seven commercials used as online and television commercials across the province this fall.
One of the participants featured in the
commercial is family doctor Dr. Birinder Narang, who is also the Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at UBC. He says one of the most concerning trends he is seeing around antibiotic use is misinformation and mistrust.
“This can be deadly in the context of antimicrobial resistance as we try to educate our patients about appropriate prescribing. We have historically been prescribing antibiotics for much longer durations than are recommended now, so we must continue to be vigilant about that,” said Dr. Birinder Narang.
The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness on wise antibiotic use through conversations among residents of BC and health professionals to highlight that prescribers and patients share responsibility in reducing unnecessary use of antibiotics.
By participating in the campaign, Dr. Narang hopes that the message helps to dispel myths about antibiotics, and provide easy to digest information that our patients can consume.
World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week runs annually from November 18 to 24. Antimicrobial resistance happens when bacteria and fungi that cause infections evolve and develop resistance to antibiotic and antifungal medicines used to treat them. Once these germs develop resistance, it becomes very difficult to treat infections.
In 2019, a panel looking at the potential socio-economic impacts of antimicrobial resistance in Canada estimated that more than 5,400 Canadians die every year from infections caused by bacteria that have become resistant to antibiotics. Furthermore, the Council of Canadian Academies estimated that approximately 26 per cent of infections in Canada are resistant to the first drugs used to treat them, and that antimicrobial resistance costs the Canadian healthcare system $1.4 billion annually.
Antimicrobial resistance is a leading cause of death, associated with an estimated five million deaths per year worldwide, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada. It could potentially compromise crucial surgeries and treatments if left unaddressed.
Nick Smith, project manager of the Community Antimicrobial Stewardship program, says the program has three core messages. The first being that staying healthy is the best way to avoid needing antibiotics. Secondly, antibiotics don’t treat viral infections. Finally, overuse of antibiotics can lead to the development of resistant bacteria.
In addition to engaging the public on wise antibiotic use, BCCDC’s Antimicrobial Stewardship Program also works with practitioners and professional associations and colleges to provide tools that help prescribers stay up to date with latest guidance for the use of antimicrobial treatments.
With the commercials, the team hopes to reach adults over age 65, as antibiotic use is high amongst this age group and has not seen the same downward trends as other younger age demographics over the past 15 to 20 years. The campaign includes adapted and translated messaging for Chinese and South Asian cultural groups.
“It was really exciting getting to hear real people’s stories and experiences, and the unscripted nature of the conversations. We were never quite sure where they were going to go, but they always ended up interesting and insightful. I hope the genuine nature of these conversations comes across in these videos and resonates with people across the province,” said Smith.
