Strictly manage the use of antibiotics in hospitals

The Ministry of Health has just issued a document guiding the implementation of antibiotic use management in hospitals. This document is applied in all hospitals in the context that most medical examination and treatment facilities are facing the rapid spread of bacteria resistant to many types of antibiotics.

Buying and selling medicine at a store in front of Bach Mai Hospital (Hanoi) - Photo: VNA.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Thi Xuyen, Deputy Minister of Health, said that the issuance of the document aims to increase the rational use of antibiotics, reduce unwanted consequences when using antibiotics, improve the quality of patient care, prevent antibiotic-resistant bacteria and reduce medical costs for patients.

For implementing units, the Ministry of Health requires the establishment of an Antibiotic Management Group and the identification of roles, functions, and tasks of each member of the group, the main component of which is the subcommittee for monitoring antibiotic use and monitoring antibiotic resistance of common pathogens of the Hospital Drug and Therapeutics Council.

In addition, the Antibiotic Management Group is also responsible for developing annual plans and implementing antibiotic management in hospitals; inspecting, monitoring and implementing interventions and evaluating, reporting the results of antibiotic use and the level of resistance of pathogenic bacteria in the unit according to the prescribed form.

The Ministry of Health also clearly defines the responsibilities of hospital leaders, heads of clinical departments, heads of pharmacy departments, heads of infection control departments, heads of microbiology departments, heads of information technology departments and related departments and offices for antibiotic use management in hospitals.

Currently, drug resistance is a global problem, especially prominent in developing countries including Vietnam. Every year, the world has hundreds of thousands of people die due to drug resistance and costs hundreds of billions of USD for drug resistance.

In 2015, for the first time, Vietnam organized the Antibiotic Resistance Communication Week to widely disseminate information about the situation of antibiotic resistance in Vietnam as well as ways to limit it.

The Ministry of Health has also signed a commitment with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and development partners on preventing drug resistance in Vietnam./.

According to Vietnamplus