Eastern Health and Quality of Care NL is joining organizations around the world in helping to increase awareness and take action to address antimicrobial resistance

This is World Antimicrobial Awareness Week.

The vice president of clinical services at Eastern Health, Debbie Walsh, says the health authority is committed to increasing understanding of the risks associated with antimicrobial and antibiotic resistance in health care.

According to Eastern Health, while antibiotics and other antimicrobials have saved millions of lives since their discovery, they are gradually becoming less effective as bacteria and other microbes develop drug resistance.

Infectious diseases physician at Eastern Health, Dr. Pater Daley, says resistant microbes made infections much harder, or impossible to treat, and few new antibiotics are being developed meaning that it is important to maintain the effectiveness of existing antibiotics through responsible use.

The public is being invited to attend a public awareness webinar, “The World is Running Out of Antibiotics” at noon today.