World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW) is a global campaign organized every year in the month of November by the World Health Organization. The goal is to raise awareness on antibiotic resistance and to encourage best practices among the general public, health workers and policy makers to avoid the further emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance.
The year it took place from the 12-17th November 2018 and it had 2 key messages by WHO:
- Think twice. Seek Advice.
- Misuse of Antibiotics puts us all at Risk.
For the full kit, click here
To raise awareness we uploaded videos on our social media pages.
Here are some the videos and their summaries
1. We know medicines are not exactly pleasant to take and it is easy to stop when you feel fine. When it comes to antibiotics, it is even more needed for you to complete your treatment as prescribed by the doctor to avoid.
2. Not every neighbor is a qualified health professional. Do not give in to the temptation of sharing medicines especially antibiotics not prescribed to you to avoid.
3. Why waste money and provoke antibioticresistance by using antibiotics (used to treat bacterial infections) for your common cold/cough (mostly caused by viruses). Not all cold/cough needs antibiotics. Seek medical counsel before taking antibiotics.
4. Medicines are quite expensive and we have difficulties letting go of them if there are leftovers so we can use next time. Once opened (especially liquid medicine), most medicines have a short life span (different from the official expiry_date). Check with your pharmacist before using any leftover antibiotics . And hey, get a home firstaidkit to keep all your medications in a safe place.
5. Always seek medical counsel before taking antibiotics
And here is a take home message video
