Sticking to minimum standards: implementing antibiotic stewardship in intensive care.

BACKGROUND: In Australia, antimicrobial stewardship programmes are a compulsory component of hospital accreditation. Good documentation around anti-microbial prescribing aids communication and can improve prescribing practice in environments with multiple decision makers. AIM: This study aims to develop and implement an intervention to improve antimicrobial prescribing practice in a 24-bed intensive care unit in a tertiary referral adult hospital. METHODS: We conducted a four-phase (observation, reflection, implementation, evaluation) prospective collaborative before-after quality improvement study. Baseline audits and surveys of antimicrobial prescribing practices identified barriers to and enablers of good prescribing practice. A customised intervention was then implemented over 6 weeks and included a yellow medication record sticker, quarterly education sessions and intensive care unit-specific empiric antimicrobial prescribing guidelines. Post-implementation, the effects were monitored by serial antimicrobial prescribing audits for 1 year. The primary outcomes were clear documentation of the start date, the planned stop date or review date and the indication for an antibiotic. These were all considered the 'minimum standards' for an antimicrobial prescription on the medication record. RESULTS: Documentation of minimum standards specifically addressed by the sticker improved (start date (72% to 90%, P < 0.001), stop date (16% to 63%, P < 0.001), antimicrobial indication documented on medication chart (58% to 83%, P < 0.01)). Overall, adherence to all three minimum standards (start date, stop date and indication) improved from 41/306 (13%) to 306/492 (63%) (P < 0.001). One-year post-implementation, the yellow sticker had become embedded into daily practice. CONCLUSION: A systematic approach to quality improvement combined with the implementation of a tailored, multi-faceted intervention can improve antimicrobial prescribing practices.

Analysis of knowledge and attitude surveys to identify barriers and enablers of appropriate antimicrobial prescribing in three Australian tertiary hospitals.

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial stewardship programmes aim to optimise use of antibiotics and are now mandatory in all Australian hospitals. AIM: We aimed to identify barriers to and enablers of appropriate antimicrobial prescribing among hospital doctors. METHODS: Two paper-based and one web-based surveys were administered at three Australian university teaching hospitals from March 2010 to May 2011. The 18-item questionnaire recorded doctors' level of experience, their knowledge regarding the use of common antimicrobials and their attitudes regarding antimicrobial prescribing. Local survey modifications allowed inclusion of specific questions on: infections in intensive care unit patients, clinical microbiology and use of local guidelines. RESULTS: The respondents (n = 272) were comprised of 96 (35%) registrars, 67 (25%)residents, 57 (21%) interns and 47 (17%) consultant hospital doctors. Forty-one per cent were working in a medical specialty. Identified barriers included: gaps in antimicrobial prescribing knowledge (especially among interns), a lack of awareness about which antimicrobials were restricted and a reliance on senior colleagues to make antimicrobial prescribing decisions. Enablers of optimal prescribing included: an acknowledgement of the need for assistance in prescribing and reported readiness to consult national prescribing guidelines. These results were used to help guide and prioritise interventions to improve prescribing practices. CONCLUSION: A transferable knowledge and attitudes survey tool can be used to highlight barriers and facilitators to optimal hospital antimicrobial prescribing in order to inform tailored antimicrobial stewardship interventions.