The Department of Health and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s (PM&C) Behavioural Economics Team of the Australian Government (BETA) have released the findings of a 12-month trial of trying to reduce antibiotic prescriptions, reporting that Australia’s General Practice doctors (GPs) prescribe more antibiotics than any other health professionals in the country.
PM&C said the trial, Nudge vs Superbugs: A behavioural economics trial to reduce the overprescribing of antibiotics, was part of a strategy to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
“AMR is one of the biggest threats to global health,” the Department said.
“Already over 700,000 people across the world die every year from infections we can’t treat,” it said.
“A UK Government report estimates that, by 2050, if we don’t do anything to reduce it, 10 million people a year will die because of AMR.”
PM&C said that the more people used antibiotics the more bacteria would become resistant to them and Australia’s antibiotic use remained high, particularly in primary care.
“Due to the types of illnesses and number of patients that they treat, GPs prescribe more antibiotics than other health professionals in Australia, particularly during the cold and flu season,” the Department said.
“Patient expectations, time pressures and diagnostic uncertainty all contribute to increases in prescribing.”
It said the trial explored whether providing GPs with information about the amount they prescribed would help them to reflect on and reduce antibiotic prescriptions to where they were appropriate and safe.
“The team sent letters from the Chief Medical Officer to the top 30 per cent of prescribers comparing their antibiotic prescribing with their peers.”
The Department said providing GPs with the information resulted in a reduction in antibiotic prescriptions by up to 12 per cent over the first six months after the letters were sent.
It said that over a 12-month period, the letters had reduced antibiotic prescriptions by around 190,000.
The Department of Health and BETA’s 53-page trial report can be accessed at this PS News link.
