UCA Partners Up in Fighting Antibiotic Resistance

The Urgent Care Association (UCA) is partnering with George Washington University’s Antibiotic Resistance Action Center on an initiative to put the brakes on runaway antibiotic resistance. The goal of the 3-year plan is to develop and implement evidence-based practices aimed at preserving the effectiveness of the antibiotics we have available today, namely by promoting responsible use of antibiotics. The fact that urgent care centers see some 160 million patients annually make it the perfect setting to look at ways to reduce inappropriate antibiotic use. Patients often come to urgent care complaining of symptoms they assume can be treated easily with antibiotics—so much so that they may pressure clinicians to write a prescription out of hand, unaware of the consequences of taking infection-fighting drugs when they’re actually not going to be helpful. Ultimately, reducing bacterial resistance to antibiotics would save lives and countless dollars to the U.S. healthcare system. We told you recently that UCA issued a statement, Improving Antibiotic Stewardship in Urgent Care, committing to reduction of needless antibiotic use.