FBMH supports new campaign to help keep antibiotics working
17 Feb 2017
This month, Public Health England launches a new campaign in the North West of England informing people that antibiotics don’t work for everything and stressing the importance of taking their doctor’s advice about whether they need them
It is estimated that 5,000 people die each year in England as a result of antibiotics no longer working for some infections – that’s 13 people every day.1 In around 30 years we could see 60,000 people die every year because antibiotics have stopped helping them - that’s around 160 deaths a day.
However, despite the dangers posed by antibiotic resistance, one in four people in the North West (23%) has never heard of the issue. Furthermore, 40% of people in the North West don’t realise that if someone has taken antibiotics in the last year, any infection they get is more likely to be antibiotic resistant. If someone takes antibiotics unnecessarily they are less likely to work when needed. They can also pass on antibiotic resistant bacteria to loved ones.
Antibiotics are an important tool for doctors and healthcare professionals to help treat serious bacterial infections, such as pneumonia, meningococcal meningitis and sepsis and to help ward off infections during chemotherapy, caesarean sections and other surgery. However, antibiotics are being used for everyday viral infections, such as colds or flu, where they are not effective.
In conjunction with the campaign, a powerful film has been released by Public Health England which highlights the possible consequences of failing to take action on antibiotic resistance – showing a world where treatable common infections, minor injuries and routine operations might kill once again.
The University will be supporting this campaign through a number of initiatives and the Students’ Union and Public Health England are working in partnership to widely promote the campaign to students and staff on and off campus. A series of interviews with the University’s leading academics working to tackle antimicrobial resistance will be published via our social media channels and a new game-based mobile application for school children through to adults to learn more about antibiotic resistance has been launched. In addition to these actions, staff will be taking conducting a review of teaching curriculum for key healthcare professionals to ensure they are highly skilled and knowledgeable on this topic, plus an event at Hull Science Festival on this subject has been scheduled.
Roger Harrison, Senior Lecturer in Public Health and Divisional Lead for Social Responsibility, said,
“I’m delighted to be leading this new partnership with the Students’ Union, Public Health England and Division of Population Health, Health Services Research & Primary Care at the University. This is a fantastic way to get the right message out to the tens of thousands of students, staff, and their families through this new initiative.”
The campaign will run in the Granada region on TV, radio, press and will be supported by local GP surgeries and pharmacies, social media and PR. For further information on antibiotic resistance please search NHS Antibiotics or visit nhs.uk/keepantibioticsworking.