This week is U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week, November 18 through November 24, 2019. This is an annual one-week observance to raise awareness of the importance of appropriate antibiotic use to combat the threat of antibiotic resistance. The CDC hosts Be Antibiotics Aware, an educational effort to complement this awareness week and the World Health Organization in support of a global antibiotic awareness campaign.
The Antibiotic Stewardship Program (ASP) at Cooper will host a number of educational events on and off campus. We look forward to everyone’s involvement!
How you can be antibiotics aware:
- Follow your provider’s instructions so that you’re receiving the right antibiotic at the right dose for the right duration at the right time.
- Understand that antibiotics are only prescribed when they are needed. It can be harmful to take antibiotics that aren’t needed.
- If antibiotics aren’t needed for a viral infection, ask your provider for a plan: What to do to feel better and when to seek care again if you don’t feel better.
- Learn more about possible harms from antibiotics, such as allergic reactions, C. difficile, and antibiotic-resistant infections.
- Learn how to correctly wash your hands and infection prevention measures regularly.
- When in doubt, talk to your provider!
During Antibiotic Awareness Week, follow @CDCgov to learn more about #AntibioticResistance and follow the hashtag #USAAW2019 for more conversations about this topic.
And be sure to join us on Wednesday, November 20, live on Facebook from 2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. as our Antibiotic Stewards Alex Hanretty, PharmD; Lucia Rose, PharmD; and Dana Byrne, MD, discuss the importance of preventing antimicrobial resistance and over-prescribing of antibiotics for viral infections.