TATFAR Institutions Collaborate for the 2017 World Antibiotic Awareness Week

Posted On: November 13, 2017

TATFAR partners are collaborating to support the 2017 World Antibiotic Awareness Week! This annual one-week observance, set for Nov. 13 – Nov. 19, raises awareness of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and the importance of appropriate antibiotic prescribing and use. The observance is a key component of TATFAR efforts to improve antibiotic stewardship. Take a look below for highlights from TATFAR members Canada, European Union (EU), and the United States, and check out their websites for more information.

• World Antibiotic Awareness Week
• Canada’s Antibiotic Awareness Week
• European Antibiotic Awareness Day
• U. S. Antibiotic Awareness Week

You can also participate by joining the Global Twitter Conversation. Starting Nov. 16, TATFAR partners such as Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, and the United States will use #AntibioticResistance to share resources, answer questions, and participate in a global discussion on antibiotic use and AMR.

Canadian Efforts

The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) leads Canada’s international and domestic response on AMR. PHAC brings together other federal departments, provinces, and territories, plus all sectors, to align efforts and identify collaborative opportunities to address AMR.

PHAC will release the 2017 Canadian Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System report with a webinar scheduled for Nov. 16

• PHAC will participate in the Thursday, Nov. 16, Global Twitter Chat with the European Centres for Disease Control and U.S. Centers for Disease Control
• An Antibiotic Awareness Week “how to” toolkit has been developed and shared with partners and stakeholders
• The Public Health Agency of Canada has partnered with the National Collaborating Center for Infectious Diseases and antimicrobial stewardship partners on a Thunderclap event on November 13 using #KeepAntibioticsWorking hashtag
• The November issue of the Canada Communicable Disease Report will focus on AMR with articles on
  • The Pan-Canadian framework on antimicrobial resistance and use
  • New regulations for veterinary drugs to decrease antibiotic use
  • New research in Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada on antimicrobial resistance

The Government of Canada has several resources, available in English and French languages, to promote antibiotic resistance awareness. Canadian stakeholders are pledging to use antibiotics wisely and any Canadian resident can share their own pledge to fight antibiotic resistance. The Antimicrobial Stewardship and Resistance Committee within the Association of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Disease Canada developed a Business Case document for Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs to help healthcare leaders get necessary resources to launch or improve their own antimicrobial stewardship programs.

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) will be post a variety of messages to social media during World Antibiotics Awareness week, including infographics and information from partners and stakeholders. CIHR posted a message online from Dr. Marc Ouellette, Scientific Director of CIHR Institute of Infection and Immunity and world-renowned AMR researcher, and Dr. Steven Hoffman, Scientific Director of CIHR Institute of Population and Public Health and the AMR initiative co-lead.

European Efforts

The European Antibiotic Awareness Day (EAAD) is 18 November. Every year, the European Union (EU) Member States and European Economic Area (EEA) countries observe the day with awareness initiatives, events, and communication campaigns across Europe focused on antibiotic resistance and prudent use of antibiotics. This year marks the 10th European Antibiotics Awareness Day.

For WAAW 2017, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), in cooperation with the European Commission, will host an EU-level event titled “Keeping Antibiotics Working.” The event, moderated by journalist Jason Gale, will open with a keynote speech by EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Vytenis Andriukaitis and will feature contributions by:

• Xavier Prats Monné, Director-General, EC Directorate General for Health and Food Safety
• Robert-Jan Smits, Director-General, EC Directorate General for Research and Innovation
• Andrea Ammon, ECDC Director
• Nedret Emiroglu, Director Emergencies and Communicable Diseases, World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe
• Kari Grave, Chair of the European Surveillance of Veterinary Antimicrobial Consumption Sales Expert Advisory group, Norwegian Veterinary Institute
• Pierre-Alexandre Beloeil, Senior scientific officer, EFSA

ECDC is also launching an online social media campaign using the #KeepAntibioticsWorking. Everyone is encouraged to share a message, picture, or video on their social media channels using the #KeepAntibioticsWorking hashtag during WAAW. For example, share what you can do in your professional or personal life, or at collective level, to use antibiotics responsibly and keep antibiotics working.

In addition to the event and campaign, ECDC is launching a new EAAD website and published a new communications toolkit aimed at healthcare professionals working in hospitals and long-term care facilities. A set of key messages for different groups is translated into all EU languages, plus a new page with patient stories, including three developed by ECDC.

Lastly, on 15 November, ECDC will release the latest data on AMR in the EU, reported to the European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Network (EARS-Net).

United States Efforts

U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week (formerly “Get Smart About Antibiotics Week”) is an annual one-week observance to raise awareness of the threat of antibiotic resistance and the importance of appropriate antibiotic prescribing and use. Join CDC and partners Nov. 13 – Nov. 19 as we celebrate the effort to combat the spread of antibiotic resistance and improve patient safety.

This year, in conjunction with this week, CDC is releasing a high-impact, national communications effort to raise awareness about the importance of appropriate antibiotic prescribing and use in human medicine to prevent antibiotic resistance. The effort will also support and provide resources to help improve antibiotic prescribing among healthcare professionals and help improve antibiotic use among consumers around antibiotic use in human medicine. Find new resources for parents and healthcare providers at CDC’s antibiotic use website.

The week’s events include:

• Thur, Nov. 16, 1-3 PM: Follow @CDCgov & @CDC_NCEZID to participate in the Global Twitter Chat. Use official hashtags:
  • Observance week: #USAAW17
  • Global Twitter Chat: #AntibioticResistance
• Thur, Nov. 16, 2 PM ET: Register for the CDC and the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy will host the Be Antibiotics Aware: Antibiotic Stewardship for Critical Access Hospitals webinar.