Hospitals

This includes sharing knowledge, providing feedback on local resistance data, and increasing adherence to guidelines for antibiotic use and hygiene practices. Furthermore, access to reliable infection diagnostics and feedback on epidemiological data are required to effectively address antibiotic resistance in hospitals.

In Swedish hospitals, several good practices and methods are already in place. Antibiotic Smart Sweden builds on and complements these existing practices and structures, including longstanding work by infection prevention units and Strama - the Swedish Strategic Programme against Antibiotic Resistance.

The Swedish Strategic Programme Against Antibiotic Resistance (strama.se)

An antibiotic-smart hospital...

• use antibiotics wisely and reduce risks of health care associated infections
• focus on the patient and their individual needs
• ensure that resources, training and management decisions are in place to enable an antibiotic-smart approach
• use well-functioning, existing working methods and implement them widely
• reduce unnecessary antibiotic use and healthcare-related infections by measuring, following up and providing feedback

Examples of criteria for hospitals:

• There is a formalized collaboration between the hospital's Strama working group, drug unit, healthcare hygiene unit, infection control unit, microbiological laboratory, operational management and hospital management.
• The hospital has IT-resources and tools that support responsible antibiotic use and monitoring of hospital acquired infections.
• The hospital's clinicians carry out recurring measurements of adherence to basic hygiene routines and dress code.
• The hospital has a documented structure for measurement, follow-up and feedback of local resistance levels.
• The hospital sets goals and draws up an action plan based on the Strama's guidelines.