2 November 2015

Please distribute this letter to Community Pharmacists

To all Community Pharmacists

Dear Colleague,

EuropeanAntibioticAwarenessDay(EAAD)18.11.15WorldAntibioticAwarenessWeek16-22Nov15

We aim to seek your support for the above European-wide public health initiative, aimed at improving public and professional awareness onthe responsible use of antibiotics, in order to keep them effective for the future. The rise in antibiotic resistance is linked to the extent and the way in which antibiotics are used.Inappropriate use of antibiotics is the main driver of antibiotic resistance. This has been shown to cause patients to become colonised orinfectedwithantibiotic-resistantbacteria, aswellasbeingassociatedwithC. difficileinfectionsinthecommunity.

Key messages

- Patients receiving antibiotics should receive the right drug, at the right dose and the right duration for the individual. Antibiotics should be taken as prescribed, never saved for later or shared with others. Thus, the appropriate use of antibiotics will slow down the development of antibiotic resistance.

- Unnecessary lengthy durations of antibiotic treatment and inappropriate use of broad-spectrum antibiotics should be avoided.

- Many antibiotics are prescribed and used for self-limiting mild infections when they don’t need to be. All colds and most coughs, sinusitis, otitis media (earache) and sore throats often get better without antibiotics.

- Communitypharmacistsarewellplacedtohelpprovideadviceonoverthecountermedicinestotreatsymptoms. Discussing details using the new one pagepatient leaflet Treating Your Infection leaflet for community pharmacies(by PHE, RCGP etc) can facilitate this process and patients take away this useful advice. Please see page 2 for more details.

- Communication is key. Studies show that patients are less likely to ask their GP for antibiotics if advised what to expect in the course of an illness and given self-care advice with realistic recovery times.

- Backup/delayed prescriptions may be used by GPs or prescribers, as appropriate.

PHE have established the AntibioticGuardian campaign to help protect antibiotics and improve knowledge about antibiotic resistance across the UK. It includesthe Antibiotic Guardian pledge campaign. It calls on everyone in the UK, the public and medical community to become an antibiotics guardian by choosing one simple pledge about how they will make better use of these vital medicines. All pharmacy teams are asked to start to takeaction please, quickly and easily, by pledging to become Antibiotic Guardians via the link above (thankyou).

All pharmacists are encouragedto participate in this European Antibiotics Awareness initiative. Posters, leafletsother resources are available to educate the publicand other pharmacy staff. Please see resources on page 2.

We would be grateful if you could please promote this national PHE campaign over the winter season.

Thank you very much in anticipation of your support.

Diane Harris,

Lead Antimicrobial Pharmacist.

Useful Resources & further information

New.Treating Your Infection leaflet for community pharmacies(by RCGP & PHE). It covers a range of conditions: colds; coughs; sinusitis; middle ear infections; and sore throatsand is a useful self-care guide to help patients treat their infection. It includes advice on: illness duration; self-care and when to get help or re-consult.

The web-based TARGET antibiotic toolkit is hosted by RCGP and provides a central resource for information about antibiotic prescribing and is useful for primary care. It includes: guidance to help clinicians decide when and which antibiotics to prescribe; education for groups of primary care staff or individual clinicians; and tools such as patient leaflets to share in the consultation and posters and videos to play in the waiting areas.

Please note that our localAntimicrobialTreatmentGuidelines (across 4 Derbyshire CCGs) are available from: Antimicrob. guidelines.

Other Resources

Treat Yourself Better with pharmacist advice.

Did you know that antibiotics will NOT treat cold and flu symptoms? Find out what you can do to treat yourself better.

NHS Choices website: the Antibiotic Awareness Campaign Antibiotic Awareness Campaign materials.

The short Department of Health YouTube cartoons “take care, not antibiotics” (for use in waiting areas)

Other European Awareness Day Resources – available viacopying the link below.

The main EAAD Resources include:

Key messages on antibiotic use

Toolkit for healthcare professionals in England

Antibiotic awareness: quizzes and crosswords

Promotional material: Antibiotic awareness resources: quizzes and crosswords

Treating your infection leaflets

  • Posters & Leaflets

Promotional material: Antibiotic awareness resources: posters and leaflets

PSNC explains that antimicrobialresistance threatens the future of healthcare and that pharmacists, their teams and other healthcare workers have a vital role to play in preserving the power of antimicrobials and in controlling and preventing the spread of infections that require antibiotic treatment.

CPPE has a variety of learning events and materials on ‘Antibacterials’, as perbelow:

Antibacterials - focal point (Distance Learning)

Antibacterials - focal point (Workshop)

Antibacterials - focal point (E-Assessment)

Antibacterials (2nd edition): Learning at Lunch - Resources for educators and trainers

Antibacterials (2nd edition): Learning at Lunch – Distance Learning

Antibacterials: Learning at lunch, 2015 (E-Assessment)

Antimicrobials and infection management (E-Learning)

Antibiotics and their role in managing infections (Distance Learning)

Antibiotics and their role in managing infections, 2015 (E-Assessment)

Antibacterial resistance - a global threat to public health: the role of the pharmacy team (Distance Learning)