Health care provider education as a tool to enhance antibiotic stewardship practices

Antibiotic stewardship education for health care providers provides a foundation of knowledge and an environment that facilitates and supports optimal antibiotic prescribing. There is a need to extend this education to medical students and health care trainees. Education using passive techniques is modestly effective for increasing prescriber knowledge, whereas education using active techniques is more effective for changing prescribing behavior. Such education has been shown to enhance other antibiotic stewardship interventions. In this review, the need and suggested audience for antibiotic stewardship education are highlighted, and effective education techniques are recommended for increasing knowledge of antibiotics and improving their use.