Discrepancies in antibiotic prescriptions linked to individual habits: 5 things to know

A CDC and Prevention-supported study led by the Veterans Affairs Salt Lake City Health Care System and the University of Utah researched the practices of healthcare providers writing antibiotic prescriptions, leading to antibiotic overuse. The Annals of Internal Medicine published the study.

Here are five things to know:

1. Ten percent of healthcare providers prescribe antibiotics to more than 95 percent of patient visits, according to the study. On the other end of the spectrum, 10 percent of healthcare providers prescribe antibiotics to fewer than 40 percent of patients who visit. This study highlighted the vast differences in healthcare provider practices regarding antibiotic prescriptions.

2. The study concentrated on 1,044,523 patient visits for ARIs at 990 clinics or emergency departments at 130 VAMCs nationally, from 2005 to 2012.

3. Antibiotic prescriptions were written at 68 percent of these patient visits.

4. Researchers concluded that the antibiotic prescription discrepancies between providers were largely due to habits of individual providers, as opposed to differences in practice among clinics and hospitals, or differences in patient characteristics.

5. The researchers believe that the electronic health record allows a great communication platform for providers, patients, and scientific evidence to connect and understand when healthcare providers should actually prescribe antibiotics.

"We'd like this research to start a conversation among providers who are prescribing antibiotics less frequently with those who may be prescribing too often," said Barbara Jones, MD, MS, assistant professor of internal medicine at the University of Utah and clinician at the VA Salt Lake City Health Care System.

Copyright © 2024 Becker's Healthcare. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy. Cookie Policy. Linking and Reprinting Policy.

 


Patient Safety Tools & Resources Database

Featured Webinars

Featured Whitepapers

Featured Podcast