Two new research polls, commissioned by The Longitude Prize, have demonstrated that even though there has been a reduction in the number of prescribed antibiotics GPs are still inclined to err on the side of caution.
Prescriptions
The polls demonstrated that patients are requesting antibiotics less, indicating that the awareness campaigns are having an effect, however, there are still misconceptions surrounding antibiotic capabilities with nearly a quarter of respondents believing that antibiotics can treat viral infections. Additionally, there is a high proportion of antibiotic prescriptions being made when GPs err on the side of caution — this has been partly attributed to the lack of tools to diagnose bacterial infections.
Key highlights of the research polls include:
- A worryingly higher proportion of GPs are now reporting prescribing antibiotics when they’re not medically necessary with 76% saying they do so when they’re not sure it’s a viral or bacterial infection compared to 72% in 2014.
- GPs are now reporting that pressures from patients to prescribe antibiotics has decreased with 31% reporting patients asking for antibiotics in 2017 compared to 40% in 2014.
- To support this, more patients are reporting that they would never ask their GP for antibiotics, but 22% still wrongly believe that antibiotics can be used to treat viral infections.
- The survey also reveals a worrying trend in the increase in numbers of patients going to A&E for antibiotics (8% in 2017 compared to just 3% in 2014) if they’ve not been prescribed by their GP in the first place.
“Drug-resistant superbugs are already killing hundreds of thousands of people around the world, and this problem is only getting worse,” said Professor Dame Sally Davies, chief medical officer England and co-convener of the UN Inter-Agency Co-ordination Group on AMR. “The world is taking notice, and huge strides have been made recently — but tangible action has been far too slow to follow. We need to up the ante. Diagnostics have a key role to play in reducing inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics and in clinical trials of new drugs, I urge people to develop their ideas for diagnostics further.”
The poll, which included more than 1,000 GPs, showed that even though antibiotics can only treat bacterial infections 37% of GPs were still prescribing them for a viral infection. Furthermore, 35% of GPs reported that these unnecessary prescriptions are being made because there is a lack of easy-to-use diagnostic tools to determine if the infection is bacterial in nature.
Dr Clare Chandler, co-director of the AMR Centre at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine commented: “These results demonstrate that the use of antibiotics by GPs relates more to diagnostic uncertainty than direct demand from patients. GPs need support to manage this, and the reasons that antibiotics have hitherto served to resolve this uncertainty need further exploration.”