Become an antibiotic guardian and help keep drugs effective

>November Events / Events in Norfolk and Suffolk / Health & Wellbeing / Waveney Valley November 11, 2014

People from across Great Yarmouth and Waveney are being asked to do their bit to help ensure antibiotics remain effective by treating simple coughs and colds with over the counter remedies.

The national campaign is urging people to become an “antibiotic guardian” by pledging to talk to their pharmacist when suffering with minor illnesses rather than asking their GP for antibiotics.

It comes in the run up to European Antibiotic Awareness Day, which takes place next Tuesday (18 November). The annual event aims to help educate patients about the correct use of antibiotics, while also spreading the message that they cannot be used to cure colds or most coughs or sore throats.

Michael Dennis, prescribing advisor with HealthEast, the clinical commissioning group for Great Yarmouth and Waveney, said it was important to safeguard the use of antibiotics so that they remain effective in the future.

“When used correctly, antibiotics are incredibly effective drugs which help fight a variety of bacterial infections,” he said. “But they are no miracle cure and will have no effect on common coughs and colds.

“Coupled with this, using antibiotics incorrectly or failing to take a full course when they have been prescribed can increase the resistance which bacteria have to the drugs, making them less effective. Overuse of antibiotics can also make people more vulnerable to other illnesses in the long run, and can also mean the medication doesn’t work as well when it really is needed.

“We want to use this awareness day to educate people about the correct use of antibiotics, encourage them to sign up as an antibiotic guardian and encourage them to use more appropriate medications for minor illnesses and colds, such as those available from their pharmacist.”