World Antimicrobial Awareness Week is celebrated every year by supporting efforts to prevent the further emergence and spread of drug-resistant infections through effective communication and education.
Despite the death toll and the devastating economic and social inequities brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, the health threat posed by antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is no less dangerous, with antibiotics becoming less effective and drugs becoming more expensive.
Moreover, the misuse of antibiotics during the current health crisis is expected to have much greater negative health consequences, hindering the progress of ARM management programs. Estimates already reveal worrying prospects by 2050, even higher than cancer, with 10 million deaths that could result globally due to antibiotic resistance.
With the same slogan as last year, called Antimicrobial: Treat with care, this year’s theme of World Antimicrobial Awareness Week 2021 sends the world a key message about one of the core principles that trigger resilient health interventions. Spread awareness, stop resistance.
Without immediate action, South East Europe could become a regional hotspot for the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance. As such, combating antibiotic resistance is one of the main pillars of SEEHN intervention in the region, supporting the adoption of better antibiotic administration programs for patients.
Based on previous initiatives successfully implemented in the region, SEEHN will organize, in cooperation with the Albanian Institute of Public Health, supported by TAIEX (Technical Assistance and Information Exchange instrument of the European Commission) a Workshop on antibiotic interventions and policies in SEEHN Member States (Western Balkans and beyond).
The two-day event will take place virtually on 22 and 23 November, 2021 and will benefit from the guidance of experts from the Department of Infectious Diseases, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, Italy.
The purpose of this workshop is to map the current situation in the implementation of AMR control programs in SEEHN Member States, as recommended by the World Health Organization and the European Commission, and to report on progress to date, improvements and gaps in the participating Member States.
