Education precedes awareness on AMR
I consider explaining Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as the starting point of curbing AMR. What are bacteria, how do multiply and spread and why may bacteria be so life-threatening? What are antibiotics, how do they work and why do we need them? And what is Antimicrobial resistance: how does it develop and spread and why is AMR so threatening for the global Health and Food Safety? One can’t expect people to continuously follow up guidelines and instructions to prevent AMR if they do not truly understand the basics of AMR.
To create such understanding of AMR we do need low-threshold educational programmes on AMR. Educational programmes where we explain in understandable words the concept of AMR. Where we explain why prevention of infectious diseases is so important, why we need solid antibiotics stewardship programs, why we need faster and more affordable diagnostics, why we need novel antibiotics and why we need alternatives such as phage therapy.
It had been my ambition for a long time to set up a global Masterclass on AMR. The very first AMR Insights online International Masterclass AMR took place on 29 SEP and welcomed 35 participants and experts from 14 countries in Asia, Africa, EU and USA! I take the opportunity to thank the participants for joining this first Masterclass and the experts for their great contributions: @Amine Zorgani, @Rohini Wadanamby, @Charles Lam, @Ziad Daoud, @Anita Asamoah, @Till Bachmann, @Jeroen Bakker, @Nicolai Schaaf, @Steffanie Strathdee and @Elizabeth Tayler. Education is not possible without sharing the insights of those who are involved with AMR on a daily basis. I sincerely appreciated the presentations, interviews and the interactive sessions! Last but not least we thank the international advisory board @Dilip Nathwani, @Herman Barkema, @Ed Septimus and @Yonhhong Xiao. For the Masterclass see https://bit.ly/2ZyavjV.
We feel very much encouraged to further expand the AMR Insights educational program and we welcome those who would like to join us in making our dreams come true: info@amr-insights.eu.
