The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is launching a new antibiotic tracking system allowing hospitals to monitor antibiotic use electronically, make better decisions about how to improve use, and compare themselves to other hospitals. Before now, CDC was only able to track antibiotic use in doctors′ offices.
“Antibiotic use leads to antibiotic resistance, which is a major public health problem,” said CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, MD, MPH. “Hospitals and other health care facilities should monitor the antibiotics used in their facilities. This new system is a powerful tool that will enhance providers′ ability to monitor and improve patterns of antibiotic use so that these essential drugs will still be effective in the years to come.”
The antibiotic use tracking system is part of CDC′s National Healthcare Safety Network, a tool for monitoring infections in health care facilities, which includes over 4,800 hospitals. CDC has funded four health departments and their academic partners to implement the tracking system in 70 hospitals. In addition, any hospital that participates in the National Healthcare Safety Network can utilize this tool by working directly with its pharmacy software vendor to transmit data electronically from drug administration or barcoding records. There is no manual entry of data, thus saving a facility time and money.
Additionally, CDC is part of the Federal Interagency Task Force on Antimicrobial Resistance. During the observance week, this task force will meet in Washington, DC, to discuss next steps toward meeting goals of the recently revised A Public Health Action Plan to Combat Antimicrobial Resistance. Patients, health care providers, hospital administrators, and policy makers must work together to employ safe and effective strategies for improving antibiotic use.
Source: CDC
