The Doctor José Molina Orosa University Hospital, attached to the Ministry of Health of the Government of the Canary Islands, recently held a clinical session to present the results of the Antimicrobial Use Optimization Program (PROA) developed by a group of professionals from the center. This team works daily to "promote the prudent use of antibiotics" and recalls "the importance of preventing and controlling the spread of resistance to these drugs".
During the session, the specialists in Microbiology, Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Internal Medicine and the Hospital Pharmacy service, Francisco Javier Noguera, Camilo Ferris, Domingo Panizo, Salvador Martínez and Santiago Martín, respectively, presented the data on the main multiresistant microorganisms in the hospital, reported on the antibiotics that are most frequently prescribed and the duration of the treatments, with the intention of adequately guiding the training that the PROA Group carries out on the correct use of antibiotics.
In 2022, this multidisciplinary group assessed the situation of a total of 432 patients admitted to the Molina Orosa, which represented a significant increase compared to 2021, when 158 admitted patients were assessed. The team leaders point out that the monitoring of antibiotic consumption per patient carried out at the center and the microbiological indicators have made it possible in recent years to reduce the overall consumption of this type of drugs, which has become more evident after the Covid-19 pandemic.
The PROA team, made up of doctors from different specialties (Preventive Medicine, Microbiology, Internal Medicine) and Pharmacy, works daily to optimize the use of antibiotics. To do this, they advise specialists and respond to queries from all services regarding the prescription of antibiotics. In addition, it closely monitors patients who are infected by some type of resistant microorganism and tries to prevent the transmission of microorganisms to other patients through the most appropriate isolation measures.
Minimize the adverse effects of antibiotic use
This program, which began at the Lanzarote hospital center in 2018, aims to minimize the adverse effects related to the inappropriate use of antibiotics, which is why the team annually prepares a report on antibiotic resistance of the microorganisms detected in patients at the Molina Orosa and tries to control the appearance of resistance to them and guarantee effective therapy.
The indicators on which the PROA team works are the consumption of antimicrobials, bacterial resistance, the quality of the prescription, that is, that it is adapted to the established guidelines and the prognosis indicators, an activity that is in line with the Hospital's commitment to quality care.
Hand hygiene
The specialists in Preventive Medicine and Public Health emphasize that a very important measure to avoid the transmission of microorganisms between patients is the adequate hand hygiene that professionals, family members and visitors to hospital centers must carry out.
Antibiotics are medicines that fight bacterial infections, although for years there has been an increase in resistance to them, mainly due to the inappropriate use of these drugs.
This fact is currently considered one of the main Public Health problems that presents serious consequences, because it increases the morbidity of patients with serious infections.
