To drive home the importance of antimicrobial stewardship in the face of rising drug resistance, a Continuing Medical Education (CME) on Good Antibiotic Prescription Practices was held on February 21, 2016 at Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences. The CME was organized by the Departments of Infection Control and Microbiology. The CME was preceded by a 2-day workshop on infection control attended by 30 doctors chosen from various parts of the country.
Inaugurating the CME, Dr. Sanjeev Singh, Medical Superintendent of Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, elucidated the components and strategies of the Antimicrobial Stewardship program and emphasized the need of a team-based approach to ensure success of institutional stewardship programs.
Faculty of national repute guided the CME delegates through the brass tacks of antimicrobial stewardship. Dr. Arunaloke Chakrabarti, Professor & Head, Department of Medical Microbiology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education & Research, Chandigarh, emphasized the importance of correctly identifying fungal pathogens and performing susceptibility testing in accordance with published guidelines for appropriate use of antifungals in clinical settings.
Dr. Subramanian Swaminathan, Infectious Disease Specialist from Global Hospital, Chennai, enlightened the delegates on how to choose an antimicrobial agent according to the bacterial pathogen being isolated. He also explained that using the most powerful antibiotic against fairly susceptible bacteria may not necessarily be the best option. For better outcomes, one should always be ready to de-escalate to less powerful antibiotics for susceptible bacteria.
Dr. Shareek P.S., Infectious Disease Specialist from PRS Hospital, Trivandrum, emphasized the importance of gram stain and blood culture in diagnosing and appropriately treating sepsis. Dr. Sujith Chandy, Professor & Head, Pharmacology, Pushpagiri Medical College, Thiruvalla, explained the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics of antibiotics and their use to optimize treatment of critically ill patients.
Dr. Senthur Nambi, Infectious Disease Specialist from Apollo Hospitals, Chennai, described the recent advances in diagnosing tuberculosis. He enlightened the delegates on the various therapeutic options available for treating drug resistant tuberculosis. Dr. Jojo John, Critical Care Specialist from Medical Trust Hospital, Kochi, listed all the old antibiotics that have been revived to treat multi-drug resistant pathogens. He also explained how to optimize the dosing of these antibiotics to avoid toxicity.
The CME was attended by 120 doctors from diverse specialties.
