In 2015, the World Antibiotic Awareness Week initiated the annual World Antibiotic Awareness Week in mid-November. In 2020, it was renamed World Antimicrobial Use Week, and since 2023 it has been held under the name «World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week».
The goal of World Antimicrobial Use Week is to raise public awareness around the world about antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and promote best practices in this area among the public, health workers and policymakers to prevent further development and spread of AMR.
The problem of the unjustified use of antibiotics, antimicrobials and the consequences for human health is increasingly becoming the subject of discussion among doctors, as well as in the media, which indicates its absolute relevance.
Indeed, according to statistical surveys, many people determine for themselves the list of medications used in the treatment of certain diseases. According to some reports, in Russia up to 95% of the population prescribe antibacterial drugs for themselves. But any medicine has a set of contraindications, possible side effects, which doctors know about, but which ordinary citizens stubbornly ignore.
Medicines belonging to the group of antibiotics and antimicrobials are no exception to the rule, and their prescription requires a mandatory preliminary assessment of the patient’s health by a doctor. Only he is able to competently prescribe a course of treatment, make a decision on whether the use of such drugs is required at all in each specific case, and if required, which ones, in what dosage, for how long. The doctor also decides how to take the drug correctly.
The specifics of antibiotic drugs are such that patients often have contraindications to a particular drug, or it should be taken together with other drugs that reduce the negative side effects of taking antibiotics. No less important in the success of treating a disease is determining the body’s sensitivity to taking a particular drug.
AMR occurs as a result of the gradual loss of drug susceptibility by bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites, makes it difficult to treat common infections and increases the risk of disease spread, severity and death.
The development of dangerous forms of AMR around the world is accelerating for a variety of reasons, including excessive and inappropriate use of medicines in medicine, livestock and crop production, as well as limited access to clean water and sanitation.
AMR is a threat to humans, animals, plants and the environment. This problem affects us all.
To prevent the further development and spread of SCP, WHO has developed a global action plan, approved in the spring of 2015 by the World Health Assembly. In September 2016, the UN General Assembly adopted a Declaration on Antimicrobial Sustainability.
In Russia, as part of the World Week of the Proper Use of Antimicrobials, round tables, seminars, and lectures are held with the participation of representatives of WHO, the Ministries of Health, Agriculture, Education and Science of Russia, and Rospotrebnadzor.