Emerging Antimicrobial Resistance Society (EARS), a non-profit organisation based near Chandigarh, will launch a weeklong nationwide campaign from November 16 to 23 for the first time in India. About 450 microbiologists from across the country have already joined EARS as members.

Referred to as “Awareness Week on Antibiotic Knowledge and Education” (AWAKE), the campaign seeks to avert one of the world’s grave public health threats by promoting the rational use of antibiotics among doctors, clinicians, pharmacists and the general public through a series of activities. An awareness campaign through posters will be conducted simultaneously in all the cities on November 17 and 20.

The awareness walk in Bengaluru will be held on November 22. Syncorp, a contract research organisation (CRO) institute and leading clinical research training and service provider along with KIMS Hospital are part of the  campaign here.

Dr Huliraj, head, pulmonology department, KIMS Hospital will flag off the awareness walk from KIMS Hospital. The walk will be conducted up to Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute and back, a distance of 2 km. About 150 people, including doctors and students of KIMS Hospital and Syncorp students, will participate in it.

Dr Manu Chaudhary, chairperson of EARS, said the campaign would be conducted simultaneously in six cities of Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chandigarh, New Delhi, Chennai and Hyderabad. The awareness walks in all these cities would urge people to use antibiotics intelligently and prevent  ways to control antimicrobial resistance (AMR), besides inculcate the importance of hygiene and sanitation to contain this threat.

EARS will also generate awareness about the right use of antibiotics by sending SMS to people and holding one-on-one meetings with chemists in an effort to persuade them not to sell antibiotics without doctor’s prescription. Additionally, a webinar on the antibiotic stewardship programme will be organised for doctors in New Delhi on November 18. About 3,000 doctors from across India are expected to participate, which will be moderated by Dr Chand Wattal, head, microbiology department, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi.

Throughout the week, various seminars and conferences will be organised for paramedical/nursing staff and doctors in medical and pharmacy colleges across India to educate them about AMR and its implications in the absence of adequate preventive measures.

“Under the effect of antibiotics, the weak germs die, leaving only the strong ones to proliferate. The more we misuse antibiotics, the more these drug-resistant bacteria will spread. The problem is getting worse with the emergence of new bacterial strains resistant to several antibiotics at the same time. We are on the brink of the pre-antibiotic era, where untreatable bacterial diseases could result in death,” warned Dr Chaudhary.

“Hospitals, are hotbeds of infection. Bacteria in hospital settings are deadlier and much more resistant because of frequent use of antibiotics. India is in a particularly tight spot due to poor hospital hygiene practices, absence of infection control protocols and lack of awareness among the nursing staff and patients,” Dr Pankaj Mandale vice-president-cum-general secretary, EARS.