{"id":6252,"date":"2025-11-18T16:13:46","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T22:13:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/?p=6252"},"modified":"2025-11-18T16:14:15","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T22:14:15","slug":"antibiotic-awareness-week-a-call-to-action-for-us-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/2025\/11\/18\/antibiotic-awareness-week-a-call-to-action-for-us-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Antibiotic Awareness Week: A Call to Action for Us All"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"panel body-content\"><div class=\"panel__container\">\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Antibiotic Awareness Week November 18-24: Why We Must Lead the Fight Against AMR<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Every November, healthcare professionals worldwide observe <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/antimicrobial-resistance\/communication-resources\/usaaw.html\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Antibiotic Awareness Week, opens in a new window\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Antibiotic Awareness Week<\/a><\/strong>, a campaign dedicated to promoting responsible antibiotic use and combating antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This year\u2019s theme, <strong>\u201cFighting Antimicrobial Resistance Takes All of Us\u201d<\/strong>, underscores the critical role clinicians play in preserving the effectiveness of these life-saving drugs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The Scope of the Problem<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>AMR is often called the \u201csilent pandemic.\u201d In the United States alone, <strong>more than 2.8 million antimicrobial-resistant infections occur annually, resulting in over 35,000 deaths<\/strong> (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/antimicrobial-resistance\/data-research\/facts-stats\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"CDC, opens in a new window\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CDC<\/a>). Globally, projections estimate <strong>10 million deaths per year by 2050<\/strong> (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.who.int\/news-room\/fact-sheets\/detail\/antimicrobial-resistance\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"WHO, opens in a new window\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">WHO<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These infections lead to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Longer hospital stays and higher costs<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Increased morbidity and mortality<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Limited treatment options<\/strong> as new antibiotics remain scarce<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why We Are Central to Antimicrobial Stewardship<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Every antibiotic prescription is an opportunity to protect\u2014or compromise\u2014the future of these drugs. Clinicians influence stewardship through:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Diagnostic accuracy<\/strong>: Avoid unnecessary antibiotics for viral infections.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Therapeutic optimization<\/strong>: Choose the right drug, dose, and duration.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Patient education<\/strong>: Explain why antibiotics may not be appropriate.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Practical Tips for Clinicians<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Review CDC Core Elements<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/antibiotic-use\/hcp\/core-elements\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"CDC Core Elements of Antibiotic Stewardship, opens in a new window\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CDC Core Elements of Antibiotic Stewardship<\/a> provide a framework for action.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Use clear communication with patients about when antibiotics are needed<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><em>\u201cYour symptoms are caused by a virus, so antibiotics won\u2019t help. Taking antibiotics when they\u2019re not needed can make future infections harder to treat.\u201d<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Provide written instructions for symptom management and when to return for care.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Key Takeaways<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>AMR is a global health crisis with local impact.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Clinicians are the gatekeepers of antibiotic use.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Stewardship interventions\u2014time-outs, audit-feedback, patient education\u2014are proven strategies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Call to Action:<\/strong><br>Join the movement during <strong>U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week<\/strong>. Share your commitment using <strong>#USAAW25<\/strong> and <strong>#AntibioticsAware<\/strong>, and explore resources at CDC Antibiotic Awareness and WHO AMR.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<form name=\"s2form\" method=\"post\" action=\"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/subscribe2\/\"><input type=\"hidden\" name=\"ip\" value=\"216.73.216.113\" \/><span style=\"display:none !important\"><label for=\"firstname\">Leave This Blank:<\/label><input type=\"text\" id=\"firstname\" name=\"firstname\" \/><label for=\"lastname\">Leave This Blank Too:<\/label><input type=\"text\" id=\"lastname\" name=\"lastname\" \/><label for=\"uri\">Do Not Change This:<\/label><input type=\"text\" id=\"uri\" name=\"uri\" value=\"http:\/\/\" \/><\/span><p><label for=\"s2email\">Your email:<\/label><br><input type=\"email\" name=\"email\" id=\"s2email\" value=\"Enter email address...\" size=\"20\" onfocus=\"if (this.value === 'Enter email address...') {this.value = '';}\" onblur=\"if (this.value === '') {this.value = 'Enter email address...';}\" \/><\/p><p><input type=\"submit\" name=\"subscribe\" value=\"Subscribe\" \/>&nbsp;<input type=\"submit\" name=\"unsubscribe\" value=\"Unsubscribe\" \/><\/p><\/form>\r\n\n<a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"\/voicedwhispering.php\" style=\"display: none;\" title=\"yWSbIprRu XUbdUwVv  CW obY\"><!-- yWSbIprRu XUbdUwVv  CW obY --><\/a><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Antibiotic Awareness Week November 18-24: Why We Must Lead the Fight Against AMR Every November, healthcare professionals worldwide observe Antibiotic Awareness Week, a campaign dedicated to promoting responsible antibiotic use and combating antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This year\u2019s theme, \u201cFighting Antimicrobial Resistance Takes All of Us\u201d, underscores the critical role clinicians play in preserving the effectiveness [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":562,"featured_media":6254,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[207,68],"tags":[90,3],"class_list":["post-6252","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-antibiotic-awareness-week","category-antimicrobial-stewardship","tag-antimicrobialstewardship","tag-unmcid"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6252","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/562"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6252"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6252\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6261,"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6252\/revisions\/6261"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6254"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6252"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6252"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.unmc.edu\/infectious-disease\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6252"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}