Effects of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on antimicrobial prevalence and prescribing in a tertiary hospital in Singapore

Antimicrobial Resistance & Infection Control

David C. Lye¹  Tau Hong Lee¹  Tat Ming Ng²  Hui Lin Tay²  Boon Hou Chua²  Sock Hoon Tan²  Shi Thong Heng²  Min Yi Yap²  Christine B. Teng³ 

[1]Department of Infectious Diseases, National Centre for Infectious Diseases, Singapore, Singapore

[2]Department of Infectious Diseases, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore, Singapore

[3]Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

[4]Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

[5]Department of Pharmacy, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore, Singapore

[6]Department of Pharmacy, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore, Singapore

[7]Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

关键词: COVID-19;    Antimicrobial prevalence;    Singapore;    Resources;    Antimicrobial stewardship;    Pandemic;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s13756-021-00898-8

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThe deployment of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) teams to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic can lead to a loss of developed frameworks, best practices and leadership resulting in adverse impact on antimicrobial prescribing and resistance. We aim to investigate effects of reduction in AMS resources during the COVID-19 pandemic on antimicrobial prescribing.MethodsOne of 5 full-time equivalent AMS pharmacists was deployed to support pandemic work and AMS rounds with infectious disease physicians were reduced from 5 to 2 times a week. A survey in acute inpatients was conducted using the Global Point Prevalence Survey methodology in July 2020 and compared with those in 2015 and 2017–2019.ResultsThe prevalence of antimicrobial prescribing (55% in 2015 to 49% in 2019 and 47% in 2020, p = 0.02) and antibacterials (54% in 2015 to 45% in 2019 and 42% in 2020, p < 0.01) have been reducing despite the pandemic. Antimicrobial prescribing in infectious disease wards with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 cases was 29% in 2020. Overall, antimicrobial prescribing quality indicators continued to improve (e.g. reasons in notes, 91% in 2015 to 94% in 2019 and 97% in 2020, p < 0.01) or remained stable (compliance to guideline, 71% in 2015 to 62% in 2019 and 73% in 2020, p = 0.08).ConclusionDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, there was no increase in antimicrobial prescribing and no significant differences in antimicrobial prescribing quality indicators.

【 授权许可】

CC BY