The State of Antimicrobial Stewardship In the U.S. and Nebraska
Published November 21, 2019
Antimicrobial stewardship is the coordinated efforts to prescribe antimicrobial appropriately and consume antimicrobial responsibly in order to maximize clinical outcomes while minimizing unintended consequences of antimicrobial use. In recent years, major emphasis from the human and animal health sectors as well as public health and regulatory agencies has been placed on the implementation of antimicrobial… Read More
How Nebraska ASAP Is Making Everyone Antibiotic Aware
Published November 15, 2018
Written by Dr. M. Salman Ashraf, Nebraska ASAP Co-Medical Director Antibiotic Resistance is one of the most urgent threats to the public health. Overuse and misuse of antibiotics allows the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Unfortunately, a significant proportion of antibiotic use in various healthcare settings continues to be unnecessary or inappropriate. About a third (30%)… Read More
The U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week Kicks Off Today
Published November 12, 2018
Today marks the start of the start of the U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week. Below is a list of suggests from the CDC on how to participate in this annual observance: Use and share Be Antibiotic Aware educational materials Join leaders worldwide and make a commitment to The AMR (Antimicrobial Resistance)… Read More
Implementing Antimicrobial Stewardship Efforts Across Different Healthcare Settings
Published August 8, 2018
The CDC recommends implementation of antimicrobial stewardship efforts across various healthcare settings (acute, post-acute and long-term, and ambulatory care) as a way to improve antimicrobial prescribing and ultimately to improve patient safety and care. Although various antimicrobial stewardship guidance documents serve as outlines for implementation, they are not detailed plans on how to bring AS… Read More
Antimicrobial Stewardship and Rapid Diagnostic Testing in Acute Care
Published June 21, 2018
Implementation of effective antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASP) typically requires a multipronged approach. The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and Society of Healthcare Epidemiology of America Guidelines on ASP implementation recommend the use of rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) that include active ASP interventions as one such approach to improve clinical outcomes and reduce inappropriate antimicrobial… Read More
What Happened at the Nebraska Antimicrobial Stewardship Summit?
Published June 8, 2018
After almost a year of planning, the First Annual Nebraska Antimicrobial Stewardship Summit convened on Friday, June 1st, 2018 in La Vista, NE. This conference is the first of its kind in Nebraska in which information on antimicrobial stewardship in various healthcare settings is the focus of the meeting. The conference center was abuzz with… Read More
CDC Launched Web-Based Training on Antibiotic Stewardship
Published February 21, 2018
In order to improve health care providers’ understanding on the threats of antibiotic resistance and the role of antibiotic stewardship program in combating these threats, CDC launched the first of a 4-part web-based series on antibiotic stewardship training. In this first part of the self-paced, knowledge-based training program (course number WB2968), health care providers are… Read More
Antimicrobial Stewardship: Preserving the Future
Published November 13, 2017
The clinicians involved in antimicrobial stewardship at UNMC, Nebraska Medicine, and Nebraska ASAP will be discussing the role antimicrobial stewardship play in various health care settings. We will be posting daily during Antibiotic Awareness Week covering topics including stewardship in larger hospitals, small/critical access hospitals, long-term care facilities, and ambulatory settings. The introductory blog post titled… Read More
AMDA Publishes ASP Policy Template for Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Settings
Published November 7, 2017
Antibiotic use is common in long-term care facility (LTCF) with 70% of residents receiving at least one course of systemic antibiotic every year. A significant proportion of the antibiotic use (40% to 75%) in nursing homes has been found to be unnecessary or inappropriate. Antibiotic exposure drives selection for multidrug resistant organisms and C difficile infections. … Read More
Web-Based Education Improves Awareness of Nurses on Antimicrobial Stewardship in LTCF
Published September 12, 2017
Nurses are a pivotal part of antimicrobial stewardship (AS) in all healthcare settings including long-term care facilities (LTCF). Providing AS education to healthcare providers such as nurses is not only a part of the CDC AS core elements, it may also help reduce inappropriate antimicrobial prescribing. A recently published study assessed the impact of a… Read More
