In focus
Recent studies show that today many pharmaceutical companies are still discharging antibiotics into the environment on a mass scale via wastewater from their production plants.
Over the last years pharmaceutical companies made commitments for change and curbing antibiotic waste has been voiced as one of their top priorities. This year we grab the opportunity at World Water Day to look where we are at now: Have pharmaceutical companies taken action on their own commitments? And how are governments tackling this issue?
ReAct is an independent network dedicated to the problem of antibiotic resistance. ReAct is a global catalyst, advocating and stimulating for global engagement on antibiotic resistance through a broad range of collaborations.
News
In Mumbai, The Mumbai Mission for TB Control initiative was formed to scale up TB care and tackle drug resistance. By involving private practitioners operating in the city’s urban slum areas, the initiative is showing results in terms of new case detection, early treatment and increased adherence rates.
News
Fixed dose combinations are pharmaceutical products such as tablets, ointments or suspensions where two or more antibiotics are combined in one product. In the treatment of Tuberculosis and HIV, they are vital for treatment success as they improve compliance and reduce development of resistance.
In theory, it sounds like a good idea to copy this success to other bacteria and antibiotic resistance, but in practice it is generally not so.
News
On January 29, the first report from the WHO Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS) was released to the public domain. The release was preceded by a technical webinar to provide background information, highlight some technical features of the system and report, and provide opportunity to discuss the GLASS report.
Policy
Costing a country’s National Action Plan on AMR appears to be a daunting and challenging task.
As Dr. Kim Faure has great experience on costing National Action Plans on AMR ReAct interviewed her to help countries with som practical steps in the process. Once the purpose of the costing exercise is understood along with the activities that are specific for antimicrobial resistance, the costing exercise can be simplified and achieved. She will highlight some practical steps that will help the process of costing.
Opinion
Bacterial resistance to antibiotics gives rise to new ethical problems. Much of medical ethics prior to antibiotics has been focused on whether a certain procedure is justified, for example with respect to safety, efficacy and costs. But as antibiotic resistance has a global impact that persists over time, new questions arise that cannot be solved only by more or better science. In contrast with science, which is descriptive, ethics is normative. Ethics deals with what we ought to do or ought not to do.
News
It is a well-known fact that antibiotic resistant infections have a major influence on the health of people globally. Antibiotic resistance increases both mortality and morbidity due to treatment failures and lack of effective therapy. But antibiotic resistance has even more far-reaching consequences on different levels that often tend to be overlooked.
Opinion
Global antibiotic consumption in livestock was in 2013 estimated to be over 130 thousand tons. These large quantities of antibiotics are used for disease prevention and control and as growth promoters in food animals.
Given that all antibiotic use runs the risk of promoting survival of resistant bacteria this reliance on antibiotic use to sustain intense farming practices and production systems is concerning both from the perspective of resistance development.
The ReAct Toolbox is a user-friendly web-based resource that provides inspiration and guidance to take action and develop national action plans on antibiotic resistance. It is built on what has been done in the past in a variety of settings, and is aligned with ongoing and current initiatives from across the globe.
ReAct is a global network of antibiotic resistance experts with nodes in Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America and North America.
In the last 70 years the use of antibiotics has been crucial in improving countless lives and drastically reducing deaths caused by bacterial infections. The increasing development of antibiotic resistance is posing a serious threat to human health and development, the environment and for animal health. Learn more about ReAct’s work on antibiotic resistance here.
Involved in developing your country's National Action Plan? Here you find support for developing a comprehensive plan.
Doctors, pharmacists, veterinarians and other health care professionals - you have the power to take action! Learn more about how to get started.
Engagement from civil society organizations and communities is needed to tackle antibiotic resistance. Learn more about how to get involved.