NPs & PAs prescription of antibiotics on the uptick: 5 takeaways

Journal of the American Pharmacists Association published a study analyzing the use of antibiotics in healthcare settings, noting nurse practitioners and physician assistants are writing more prescriptions, according to UIC News Center. 

Researchers analyzed data from 2005 through 2010 for six classes of antibiotics — cephalosporin, macrolides, penicillin, quinolone, sulfonamides and tetracyclines.

Here are five takeaways:

1. The data showed physicians wrote 81 percent of prescribed antibiotics. However, researchers noted the number of prescriptions physicians wrote decreased over the study's five-year time frame.

2. NPs and PAs wrote more prescriptions over time as the study progressed from 2005 to 2010, which researchers said could be due to their increasing autonomy and the number of infections these providers treat.

3. Of the prescribed antibiotics, all the groups prescribed Penicillin and related drugs the most often.

 4. Physicians, NPs and PAs wrote substantially more prescriptions in the winter months, with NPs having the highest increase during these months.

5. The findings may be cause for concern as the healthcare industry places more emphasis on appropriate antibiotic use. Antibiotic resistance causes at least 2 million illnesses and 23,000 fatalities annually.

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