• Ana García-Sangenís, Jesper Lykkegaard, Malene Plejdrup Hansen, Beatriz González López-Valcárcel, Fabiana Raynal, Laura Vallejo-Torres, Lars Bjerrum, Athina Chalkidou, Jette Nygaard Jensen, Ingrid Rebnord, Bent Håkan Lindberg, Katja Taxis, Maarten Lambert, Ruta Radzeviciene, Lina Jaruseviciene, Pia Touboul Lundgren, Pascale Bruno, Vanessa Lesage, Anna Kowalczyk, Maciej Godycki-Cwirko, Christos Lionis, Maria-Nefeli Karkana, Marilena Anastasaki, Matilde Bøgelund Hansen, Jonas Kanstrup Olsen, Jens Søndergaard, Daniela Modena, Stella Mally, Laura Álvarez, and Carl Llor.
• Fundació Institut Universitari per a la Recerca a l'Atenció Primària de Salut Jordi Gol, Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 587 àtic, 08007, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.
• Fam Pract. 2024 Nov 12.

BackgroundThe primary cause of antimicrobial resistance is excessive and non-indicated antibiotic use.AimTo evaluate the impact of a multifaceted intervention aimed at various healthcare professionals (HCPs) on antibiotic prescribing and dispensing for common infections.Design And SettingBefore-and-after study set in general practice, out-of-hours services, nursing homes, and community pharmacies in France, Greece, Lithuania, Poland, and Spain.MethodsFollowing the Audit Project Odense method, HCPs from these four settings self-registered encounters with patients related to antibiotic prescribing and dispensing before and after an intervention (February-April 2022 and February-April 2023). Prior to the second registration, the HCPs undertook a multifaceted intervention, which included reviewing and discussing feedback on the first registration's results, enhancing communication skills, and providing communication tools. Indicators to identify potentially unnecessary prescriptions and non-first-line antibiotic choices were developed, and the results of the two registrations were compared.ResultsA total of 345 HCPs registered 10 744 infections in the first registration period and 10 207 infections in the second period. In general practice, participants showed a significant 9.8% reduction in unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions in the second period, whereas limited or no effect was observed in out-of-hours services and nursing homes (0.8% reduction and 4.5% increase, respectively). Pharmacies demonstrated an 18% increase in safety checks, and correct advice in pharmacies rose by 17%.ConclusionExternal factors like COVID-19, antibiotic shortages, and a streptococcal epidemic impacted the intervention's benefits. Despite this, the intervention successfully improved antibiotic use in both settings.© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press.

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