IMA launches online certificate course on rational antibiotic use for doctors
New Delhi: The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has launched a online certificate course to help medical practitioners promote the rational use of antibiotics and tackle the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
The course is titled "Rational Use of Antibiotics to Reduce the Threat of Antimicrobial Resistance – A Certificate Course for Medical Practitioners." The programme aims to strengthen awareness about responsible antibiotic prescribing and antimicrobial stewardship among healthcare professionals.
It is available free of cost for all medical practitioners and includes evidence-based learning modules, practical strategies for antimicrobial stewardship, and an online assessment. Participants who complete the course will receive a certificate.
The association has encouraged doctors across the country to enroll in the programme and update their knowledge on rational antibiotic use.
Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is one of the biggest threats to modern medicine, making infections harder to treat as microorganisms become resistant to commonly used antibiotics.
Commenting on this, Dr Dhruv Chauhan, National Spokesperson, Indian Medical Association Junior Doctors Network (IMA-JDN) told Medical Dialogues, "It is a great initiative after keeping in mind how the antibiotics are being misused in public and how awareness and knowledge can be spread."
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that considering the emerging threats of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), which is now one of the top global public health threats facing humanity, the National Medical Commission had released a module for Medical students, Doctors (residents, faculty, Medical officers, etc.) and allied health professionals (Nurses, Pharmacist, Technicians and other allied health professionals) and administrators.
It is estimated that bacterial AMR was directly responsible for 1.27 million global deaths in 2019, and 4.95 million deaths were associated with drug-resistant infections. AMR puts many of the gains of modern medicine at risk and threatens the effective prevention and treatment of infections caused by resistant microbes, resulting in prolonged illness and a greater risk of death. Treatment failures also lead to longer periods of infectivity, and the prohibitively high cost of second-line drugs may fail to treat these diseases in many individuals.
Also read- Diagnostic Tests Must before prescribing Antibiotics to patients: NMC guidelines for doctors
