Antimicrobial Resistance and Antimicrobial Stewardship in Home Healthcare

Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance, the ability of microbes to become resistant to known antimicrobial medications, is a growing and serious global health concern. There are growing numbers of publications about efforts to educate nurses about antimicrobial resistance, and efforts to involve nurses in antimicrobial stewardship in acute and long-term care settings; however, this has not been the case in home care. Home care organizations are required to address infection control and surveillance, including patient, family, and staff education. Home care nurses play an important role in identifying infections, performing cultures, and teaching patients and families. This article provides an overview of antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial stewardship and provides antimicrobial stewardship actions for home care nurses and agencies. In the interest of public health, home care agencies and nurses can, and should, educate themselves and patients about antimicrobial resistance and employ antimicrobial stewardship strategies.

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Parents in the Use of Antibiotics: A Case Study in a Mexican Indigenous Community

“…Among the actions to manage antibiotic resistance is home care, avoiding the development of nosocomial infections that require excessive use of antibiotics. Doctors and nurses should adopt antimicrobial management strategies at home, utilizing digital tools or telemedicine, with new treatment opportunities and therapeutic choices [44][45][46].…”

Qualitative study on antibiotic management in households: perception of family caregivers

“…On the characteristics of the home medication manager, it is important to highlight that the participants describe that the administration of medications and antibiotics at home is part of the functions of the main family caregiver, and this role is highly influenced by gender, age, and the role played at home (older women, housewives), however, they also express some essential competencies to carry out this activity related to understanding the effect and characteristics of medication use. This topic is little explored in research, some approaches such as that of Mohammed and Gorski (2021) 75 describe that the family caregiver must have knowledge of how to prevent and identify infections, communicate the characteristics of the therapy (dose, time of consumption, diet, etc.) and monitor any side effects of the administration of antibiotics.…”