ASP-COMPLEX: redefining antimicrobial stewardship to improve outcomes in high-risk patients with severe infections

At a time of great concern regarding trends in morbidity and mortality from infections, and mindful of the limitations of our current approaches to combating them, this document sets out a structured programme of proposals aimed at improving, in the short and medium term, the survival of the most at-risk patients with severe infections. These are complementary proposals which, on the one hand, reinforce already established initiatives and, on the other, introduce some novel aspects to the approach to this complex problem. They focus on accelerating, standardising, and refining the clinical diagnosis of severe infection and its microbiological diagnosis and, above all, on improving the effectiveness of antimicrobial treatment, based on its immediate initiation with the most effective treatment available, and with an improved capacity to integrate innovation into all stages and processes. This programme is designed to be implemented within the framework of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Programmes (ASPs) (hence the name ASP-COMPLEX), and requires appropriate dissemination and surveillance policies, alongside a collaborative environment among the multiple stakeholders involved in delivering innovation (experts, ASP teams, healthcare administration, academia, the pharmaceutical industry, etc.).