Antimicrobial Stewardship Program

Antibiotics are important medications in treating bacterial infections, preventing the spread of disease, and reducing serious complications of disease.  The overuse and misuse of antibiotics are key contributors to antibiotic resistance.  Antibiotics can be effective for bacterial infections but are ineffective for viral infections.  Some infections that do not benefit from antibiotic treatment include:

• Common cold
• Flu (influenza)
• Most coughs
• Bronchitis
• Some sinus infections
• Some ear infections
• Stomach flu

Taking antibiotics for a viral infection:

• Will not help the symptoms
• Will not cure the infection
• Will not keep others from getting sick
• May cause unnecessary/harmful side effects
• Will promote antibiotic resistance

Antibiotic stewardship promotes the appropriate use of antibiotics.  Antibiotic stewardship can preserve the effectiveness and extend the life span of current antibiotics.  Appropriate use of antibiotics can also protect individuals from antibiotic-resistant infections and help avoid side effects from unnecessarily taking antibiotics.

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso has begun an antibiotic stewardship program in our Texas Tech Physicians of El Paso clinics.  As part of this program, we are providing educational resources on antibiotic stewardship and appropriate use of antibiotics.  The institution will be following CDC criteria and recommendations for this program.  We encourage you to visit the sites below to become familiar with antibiotic stewardship and practical approaches to managing infections.

• CDC Training on antibiotic stewardship. This online training course offers participants over ten hours of free continuing education credits.  It is accessible in multiple modules that can be taken in any order.
• Stanford Center for Continuing Medical Education. This activity provides a practical approach to the management of common outpatient infections through the use of didactic videos, patient role plays, and interactive case based video.
• https://www.cdc.gov/antibiotic-use/community/for-hcp/continuing-education.html
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK344270/
• https://www.doh.wa.gov/YouandYourFamily/IllnessandDisease/HealthcareAssociatedInfections/EQuIP/AmbulatoryCare
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0fe2pz-5vE

For any questions on TTUHSC El Paso’s antimicrobial stewardship program or to report issues with the above links, please contact the Infection Control Nurse at 915.215.4510.