NACDS Foundation Research Front-and-Center in Global Focus on Antibiotic Stewardship

Press Release

Arlington, Va.

— With the 17th Annual NACDS Foundation Dinner rapidly approaching, the publicity surrounding the 2015 Get Smart About Antibiotics Week provides a timely demonstration of the public health relevance that the NACDS Foundation’s benefactors will support on December 3. Get Smart About Antibiotics Week – November 16-22 – is part of the larger “Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work” public health initiative, which is spearheaded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to coincide with similar programs by the European Union, Canada, Australia, the World Health Organization, and the Pan American Health Organization.

"Antibiotic resistance presents a significant global, national and community threat, the NACDS Foundation is proud to play our part in the development of effective community antibiotic stewardship straregies."

The CDC effort is an implementing component of the White House National Strategy for Combating Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria — launched in 2014 – which is designed to ensure that antibiotics are prescribed only when they are needed and used as they should. The program focuses on common illnesses that account for most of the antibiotic prescriptions written for children and adults in doctors’ offices and other outpatient settings.

Dr. Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, Director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted during the launch of the White House National Strategy for Combating Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria: “Every day we don’t act to better protect antibiotics will make it harder and more expensive to address drug resistance in the future. Drug resistance can undermine both our ability to fight infectious diseases and much of modern medicine.”

To help address this public health threat, the NACDS Foundation has committed to work with the Colleges of Pharmacy at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Ferris State University on a retrospective research study that will evaluate the impact of a neighborhood pharmacy antibiotic stewardship model in at least 10 states by the end of 2016. This research provides the opportunity to evaluate the impact of blending advancements in point-of-care testing with an innovative care delivery model to prevent misuse and over-use of antibiotics for flu and

strep throat.

This model is anchored by a physician-led collaborative practice agreement and employs community pharmacy care and evidence-based, clinical guidelines.

This study, which the NACDS Foundation committed to as part of White House Forum on Antibiotic Stewardship last June, builds on a prior research pilot commissioned by the NACDS Foundation. The preliminary findings of the initial research indicate that a patient-care model involving collaborative practice with physicians and community pharmacists could potentially lead to more judicious use of antibiotics and antivirals, improved public health, and safe and convenient care for patients.

"When supporters gather in New York City at the NACDS Foundation Dinner on December 3, they will be coming together to support promising public health research,” said NACDS Foundation President Kathleen Jaeger. “Antibiotic resistance presents a significant global, national and community threat, the NACDS Foundation is proud to play our part in the development of effective community antibiotic stewardship strategies.”