I.

SUMMARY

Antimicrobial resistance is a global threat as it is present in all parts of the world

and it means that there is a shortage of effective antibiotics to treat simple infections and
diseases. Also, statistics reveal that because of antimicrobial resistance, patients’
morbidity and mortality are increased, as well as healthcare related expenditures. Many
studies and research shows that if nurse’s role is explored and there are steps that can
be taken towards contributing to minimizing antimicrobial resistance. According to some
researches and studies, nurses are in an ideal position to tackle antimicrobial resistance
as they spend a lot of time with their patients so they can function as patient advocates
and educate them about antimicrobial resistance and proper use of antimicrobials.

II. BACKGROUND

Antibiotics are believed to be one of the greatest discoveries of the 20th century.
Without them, there would have been more incurable diseases and a lot more lives lost.
We depend on antibiotics in treating almost all types of infections, from a simple ear
infection to seriously fatal blood infections.

Antibiotics are medicines used to treat diseases such as (but not limited to)
tuberculosis, urinary tract infections, acne, bronchitis and pneumonia. Antibiotics are
effective only on infections and illnesses caused by bacteria as they block vital processes
in bacteria, kill the bacteria and in that way help body’s immune system to fight bacterial
infections (WHO, 2015). All antibiotics are antimicrobials. Different types of antibiotics
are available to treat various conditions, such as penicillin (mostly used to treat skin
infections, chest and urinary tract infections), cephalosporins (used to treat various
infections but are particularly used for septicaemia and meningitis), etc.

It is important to take the whole course of antibiotics prescribed and even if a

person starts feeling better after a few days of taking antibiotics, it does not mean that
the infection has cleared up completely and antibiotics must be taken only when really
needed. Failure in finishing the whole course of prescribed antibiotics can result in need
to restart the treatment later and cause the spread of antibiotic-resistant substances
among harmful bacteria.

WHO recommend that patients only use antibiotics when they are prescribed by a
doctor. Furthermore, patients should take the full prescription, even if feeling better, and
they should never share antibiotics with others or use leftover antibiotics. When it comes
to health care workers, WHO say they should only prescribe antibiotics when patients
truly need them, and should ensure they are prescribing the correct antibiotic to treat the
illness.

Studies cited by the CDC show that up to 50% of all antibiotic prescriptions written
each year are not needed, or are not prescribed appropriately which lead to a higher risk
of antibiotic resistance among these individuals.

 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

Antibiotic resistance is related specifically to common bacteria’s resistance to

antibiotics. This is one of the top infectious disease threats facing the world today. The
escalating resistance to antibiotics has been named by the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention as one of the top 5 threats to an individual’s health.

Many people do not fully understand the power of their own bodies and turn to
antibiotics as a quick possible cure for their ailment, when all the while that decision could
have major repercussions not only to their own immune system, digestive system and
personal future health but it could affect the human race. Public knowledge could assist in
the prevention of an antibiotic resistance in understanding the intended use,
repercussions of overuse, important of proper dosage and the approaching failure of
antibiotics This is beginning to be one of the largest problems not only affecting our
country, the Philippines, but also throughout the globe.

The Department of Health recently highlighted the growing problem of antibiotic

resistance. It will become more difficult to treat infection as resistance grows, with worrying
implications for patient care. It is important that antibiotics are used in the right way to
achieve the best outcome for patients, slow down resistance and ensure these important
medicines continue to stay effective. . “The more antibiotics are used, the more quickly
bacteria develop resistance,” says the CDC.

Statistics show that between years 2000-2010 the usage of antibiotics by humans
has increased by 30 per cent. About 80 per cent of all antibiotics are being used within
community settings which means that the usage is very often left unchecked and availed
without prescriptions. In developing countries, resistance is present due to a lack of basic
healthcare and public health infrastructure, also limited access to clean drinking water
and a huge deficit of trained healthcare providers.

Clearly, antibiotic resistance is not a new phenomenon. Nonetheless, the frequency

of these “antibiotic resistance events” are increasing.
 III. STAND

With the given information, I can say that antibiotic resistance is truly a major
public health threat that we should all be aware of. Try to think that these antibiotic drugs
are the major weapon currently deployed by doctors in their war against infectious
diseases.

Antibiotics are miracle drugs, for sure. When introduced in the 1940s, they
dramatically reduced the numbers and severity of illness and death from bacterial
infections. They either kill bacteria or keep them from reproducing. What antibiotics can’t
do is fight viral infections like colds, flu, upper respiratory infections, allergies, many
earaches, and most sore throats.

What’s often cast aside is the fact that antibiotics kill good bacteria along with the
bad. They also carry the potential of setting off harmful adverse reactions. In other words,
they’re serious medicine that shouldn’t be taken casually. Yet many people continue to
cling to the notion of “why not take something if there’s even a chance that it will make
me better?”, when in reality there are big risks: risks that can land you in the hospital.

The risk isn’t just to you. There’s also a risk to society in general when these drugs
aren’t prescribed properly, or aren’t taken as prescribed. That’s because over time the
harmful bacteria have adapted to the antibiotics currently in circulation, rendering this
remedy less effective or, in some cases, useless. Part of that is simply the nature of how
bacteria work, but the widespread overuse of these drugs has fast-tracked the
consequences.

Imagine if antibiotics are no longer working. How can we fight bacterial infections
and illnesses? How can we control these diseases? The idea is pretty scary if you think
about it. And that goes not just for patients, but for nurses and other health care providers
as well. We are all at risk if we don’t give much attention about this issue. Unless action
is taken to halt the practices that have allowed antibiotic resistance to spread and ways
are found to develop new types of antibiotics, we could return to the days when routine
operations, simple wounds or straightforward infections could pose real threats to life:
same risks as it did before Alexander Fleming discovered the first antibiotic.

Let’s face the reality, people. Antibiotic resistance is now spreading across the
globe. Each day, month, and year, more and more people are becoming antibiotic
resistance. When will we start to take action? Don’t wait for the day that your body will
no longer respond to any of these. The discipline and change that we all need should
start in ourselves.

It is stated in the book, Professional Nursing in the Philippines, that in accordance

with the Generics Act of 1988 (R.A. 6675), nurses are the patient’s advocate. Their role
is not only as drug administrators but also as educators by giving information; as
evaluators through monitoring, verifying and reporting of usage and problems
encountered, and as coordinators with physicians, pharmacist, dentists and concerned
groups. So we, future health care providers and those current health care providers have
to fulfil and do each of our duties and responsibilities which can help to prevent this soon
to be “antibiotic apocalypse”. Let’s serve as antibiotic guardians to our self, family,
patients and to all individuals.

IV. ALTERNATIVES

“Education is the doorway to knowledge.” As a future health care provider, one

of our main role is to be a health educator. Education about the variances of antibiotics
is helpful; one drug may work for strep throat but not for a urinary tract infection.
Teaching patients the differences between viral infections and bacterial infections will
help in deciding proper treatment. When most people start to feel sick, for example with
a cold or sore throat, they automatically think the cure comes from the doctor's pen
writing a prescription. Many times these are just viral infections that the human body can
fight off by itself. Viral infections do not respond to antibiotic treatment and could cause
more harm to the immune system if taken improperly.

As the more knowledgeable for the reason that we have a baseline knowledge
about this health issue, the prevention and change should start in ourselves. So we should
avoid requesting antibiotics for treatment of viral or fungal infections in our own personal
and family care.

Use antibiotic properly. Never take someone else’s antibiotic or use old antibiotics.
There are different types of antibiotics and these varies in every bacterial illness or
condition an individual has.

Complete the prescribed course of treatment. Listen to what exactly your health
care provider or physician tells you. Not completing the full prescription because you
already feel better, promotes the growth and multiplication of drug-resistant bacterias.

Preventing the root cause of why we take these antibiotics; preventing infections.
Washing your hands is one of the most important action a person can do to avoid a
bacterial illness whether it is after using the restroom, handling raw meat or leaving the
gym. Public areas are breeding grounds for bacterias to spread, so be cautious of places
like the sporting events, the mall and specially in moist and sweaty environment. Keep a
safe distance from those that you know are sick and if you are to become sick try to stay
away from others. Prevention of contracting a bacterial infection is just as important as
the antibiotic you may be prescribed to fight an infection. Help fight antibiotic resistance
by taking simple steps to prevent the spread of infections. Just like the old saying goes
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

I implore you to take action against this frightening and potentially devastating
problem. We cannot rely on researchers to continue the creation of new miracle drugs to
fight off super-bugs. We need to take the initiative and do what WE can to fight antibiotic
resistance and these actions should start in ourselves.

V. SUPPORTING DATA

Alexander Fleming himself, credited with the discovery of first antibiotic, warned
us as early as 1945 that antibiotics could lose their effectiveness. His eerily
prescient Nobel Prize speech cautions that “there may be a danger, though, in
underdosage of this antibiotic. It is not difficult to make microbes resistant to penicillin in
the laboratory by exposing them to concentrations not sufficient to kill them, and the
same thing has occasionally happened in the body. The time may come when penicillin
can be bought by anyone in the shops. Then there is the danger that the ignorant man
may easily underdose himself and by exposing his microbes to nonlethal quantities of the
drug make them resistant.”

Maryn McKenna, a science writer, explains “We’ve been warned about antibiotic
resistance since at least 1945, we just haven’t been listening.”

Rapidly emerging resistant bacteria threaten the extraordinary health benefits that
have been achieved with antibiotics. This crisis is global, reflecting the worldwide overuse
of these drugs and the lack of development of new antibiotic agents by pharmaceutical
companies to address the challenge.

Antibiotic-resistant infections place a substantial health and economic burden on

the world’s health care system and population. Antibiotic resistance is a very real threat
to public health and one that needs to be taken seriously. It seems global efforts to
combat this threat are underway.

”We currently have effective medicines to cure almost every major infectious disease, but
we risk losing these valuable drugs and our opportunity to eventually control many
infectious diseases because of increasing antimicrobial resistance.” (Gro Harlem
Brundtland)