Roadmap Series
AMR governance: behaviour and blame
Published on 17/03/2021
Are policy and regulatory bodies meeting the challenges presented by the global threat of antimicrobial resistance? If not, why not? And who should be responsible for ensuring they do?
Oliver Dodd/Flickr
This event featured panellists Dr Vikas Aggarwal, South Asia Regional Lead, Fleming Fund Grants Programme, Mott MacDonald, and Professor Anita Kotwani, Head of Pharmacology, V.P. Chest Institute, University of Delhi. It was moderated by Professor Robyn Alders, of Chatham House, UK, and took place on Wednesday 17 March 2021.
Watch the recording here:
Panellists’ Key messages
- Having a National Action Plan (NAP) is not enough . The NAP must demonstrate commitment, especially in financial terms, from the government.
- Multisectoral collaboration from Day One is important . Every sector should ‘own’ the AMR response.
- The AMR response should be mainstreamed. AMR-related surveillance and response should be embedded within existing health information systems, disease surveillance programmes and health system strengthening initiatives.
- Establish a government monitoring unit under an AMR nodal centre to six-monthly monitor and evaluate the activities of NAP-AMR and policy implementation.
- Invest in public education and awareness to change the behaviour of consumers and simultaneously change the behaviour of all stakeholders.
- Introduce the One Health concept and appropriate use of antibiotics in high school curricula. This will improve understanding of AMR, behaviour change towards overuse of antibiotics and probably ‘blame game’.
Further reading
- Government of India (2017) India’s National Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance (NAP-AMR) 2017 – 2021
- Holloway K.A. et al (2018) ‘Promoting quality use of medicines in South-East Asia: reports from country situational analyses’, BMC Health Services Research.
- Kotwani, A. et al (2021) ‘Knowledge and behavior of consumers towards the non-prescription purchase of antibiotics: An insight from a qualitative study from New Delhi, India’, Pharmacy Practice.
- Kotwani, A. et al (2017) ‘Prescriber and dispenser perceptions about antibiotic use in acute uncomplicated childhood diarrhea and upper respiratory tract infection in New Delhi: Qualitative study’, The Indian Journal of Pharmacology.
- Kotwani, A. et al (2016) ‘Knowledge and perceptions on antibiotic use and resistance among high school students and teachers in New Delhi, India: A qualitative study’, The Indian Journal of Pharmacology.
- Kotwani, A. et al (2012) ‘Irrational use of antibiotics and role of the pharmacist: an insight from a qualitative study in New Delhi, India’, Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics .
- Wellcome report (2020) ‘The Global Response to AMR: Momentum, success, and critical gaps’
- WHO presentation (2016) ‘Antimicrobial resistance: global burden’.
- WHO (2019) ‘Situational analysis of antimicrobial resistance in the South-East Asia Region, 2018: an update on two years implementation of national action plans’.
- World Health Day 2011 materials: 1. Commit to a comprehensive, financed national plan with accountability and civil society engagement: a master plan to combat antimicrobial resistance, and 4d. reduce use of antimicrobials in food-producing animals.
You can add your voice to the discussion by going to the Slack workspace and the channel #governance-behaviour-and-blame.
