Decreasing Trends in Antibiotic Consumption in Public Hospitals from 2014 to 2017 Following the Decentralization of...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Pharmacoeconomics
• Infectious Disease Management

Background:

• Myanmar decentralized drug procurement to a pull system in 2014.
• This shift potentially increased broad-spectrum and last-resort antibiotic use.
• Assessing antibiotic consumption trends post-decentralization was crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate annual antibiotic consumption trends and patterns in Myanmar's public hospitals from 2014 to 2017.
• To establish a baseline for antimicrobial consumption surveillance.
• To analyze the impact of a decentralized drug procurement system on antibiotic use.

Main Methods:

• Utilized World Health Organization (WHO) methodology for antimicrobial consumption surveillance.
• Employed hospital antibiotic procurement records as a proxy for consumption data.
• Analyzed data in total defined daily doses (DDDs) for fiscal years 2014-2017.

Main Results:

• Total antibiotic consumption decreased by 19% across 32% of public hospitals studied (2014-2017).
• Consumption of first-line antibiotics rose, while broad-spectrum antibiotic use declined.
• Procurement of quinolones decreased; linezolid was the sole last-resort antibiotic used.

Conclusions:

• Antibiotic consumption showed a decreasing trend in Myanmar's public hospitals.
• The study provides essential baseline data for establishing a national antibiotic consumption surveillance system.
• Findings suggest a potential shift towards more judicious antibiotic prescribing patterns.