Reducing the Use of Antibiotics for Viral Upper Respiratory Infections in the Primary Care Setting

AbstractProblem: Antibiotic resistance leads to 700,000 deaths worldwide each year. Antibiotic overuse is a leading cause of this resistance and is particularly prevalent in patients with upper respiratory symptoms, even though most URIs are viral. Literature Review: Antibiotic overuse could be minimized using POC testing and decision-support tools, but these methods are expensive, not standardized, and poorly studied. Purpose/Aims: The purpose of this project was to implement an antibiotic stewardship program in an internal medicine clinic to reduce unnecessary antibiotic prescribing for viral URIs. This project aimed to integrate practice guidelines and recommendations, visual aids in the waiting room and exam rooms, and reduce the number of antibiotics prescribed for viral URIs during a 4-week period. Methods: This project was a one group pretest-posttest design comparing data from September 2022 and September 2023 in a suburban Internal Medicine clinic with a focus on the Nurse Practitioners. Results: Practice guidelines were distributed to the NPs for use during clinic visits, and handouts and pamphlets were distributed to the patients by the providers, although 5 patients did not receive the informational resources. Antibiotic prescribing for all URIs was reduced by 12.5% when comparing 2022 (29.17%) and 2023 (16.67%). Integration of practice guidelines, recommendations, visual aids were effectively introduced into the clinical workflow. Limitations: A small sample size over a short period of time. Conclusion: Raising awareness and integrating evidence-based guidelines into clinical practice can effectively reduce antibiotic prescribing.Keywords: antibiotic resistance, antibiotic prescribing, upper respiratory infections

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Kansas

Year dc:date.issued

2023

Author dc:creator

• Avery, Martha Krattli

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Bosak, Kelly
• Herlihy, Kesa

• Nursing

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright held by the author.

Language dc:language.iso

en

Dc Identifier Other

http://dissertations.umi.com/ku:19235

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:kuscholarworks.ku.edu:1808/38638