Adopt AWaRe: Handle antibiotics with care.

‘The AWaRe campaign ­ ‘˜AdoptAWaRe, Handle antibiotics witth care’ ­ was officially launched on 19 June at the second ministerial conference in The Netherlands.  Using the “access,” “watch,” and “reserve” designations established previously, WHO has created a new tool to limit the use of drugs associated with the highest risk of resistance and to increase the use of antibiotics in countries where supply and availability is low. The first goal of AWaRe is to have all countries report antibiotic use by 2023. The second goal is to limit 60% of global antibiotic consumption to drugs from the “access” category. The campaign web site https://adoptaware.org/ provides advocacy and communication materials and resources for policy makers.’

From the website:
– Superbug infections could cost the lives of around 2.4 million people in Europe, North America and Australia over the next 30 years if no action is taken.
– In selected low- and middle-income countries, the proportion of resistant infections ranges from 40-60% compared to an average of 17% for OECD countries
– In 2015, there were 671,689 infections with antibiotic-resistant bacteria recorded in the European Union

‘The overall goal is to reduce the use of Watch Group and Reserve Group antibiotics (the antibiotics most crucial for human medicine and at higher risk of resistance), and to increase the use of Access antibiotics where availability is low.’

‘We can reduce or even reverse antibiotic resistance by using antibiotics more responsibly. But how do we do that and still ensure that patients are treated effectively? WHO has developed a tool to help global, regional and national decision-making on which antibiotics to use when.’