Patients in Wales are being alerted to the need for GPs to reduce the inappropriate use of antibiotics after research showed that some infections are becoming more resistant to treatment.
A report from the National Public Health Service for Wales has found that some of the most common infections cannot be effectively treated with antibiotics.
The Welsh Assembly Government has unveiled a new leaflet which will stress to patients that antibiotics are either not required or are not effective for many ailments.
Dr Tony Jewell, the chief medical officer for Wales, said: “There is already clear and recently produced NICE guidance for GPs and other health professionals on the prescribing of antibiotics, particularly for respiratory infection.
“It is up to them to use their clinical judgements as to when they feel it is appropriate to give antibiotics to a patient, but a group set up to look at the issue of antibiotic resistance felt patients needed more information so they could understand when antibiotics are effective or not.”
The leaflet launch coincides with the first European Antibiotic Awareness Day, which will be an annual event to raise awareness on how to use antibiotics in a responsible way.
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