Antibiotic misuse pushing India into public health crisis: Doctors

Highlighting rampant misuse by both patients and doctors, Dr Srinivas stressed that antibiotics must be taken strictly as prescribed and for the full course.

India is facing a serious public health crisis due to the growing misuse of antibiotics, leading to a sharp rise in antimicrobial resistance (AMR), All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) director Dr M Srinivas warned on Monday.

Antibiotic misuse pushing India into public health crisis: Doctors

Highlighting rampant misuse by both patients and doctors, Dr Srinivas stressed that antibiotics must be taken strictly as prescribed and for the full course.

“Incomplete treatment or arbitrary use directly fuels antimicrobial resistance,” he said, urging all doctors to follow uniform treatment guidelines and avoid prescribing antibiotics where they are not needed.

The consequences are already severe. “Today, when critically ill patients are admitted to ICUs and need antibiotics the most, many of these drugs just don’t work anymore,” he stated. “If we don’t act now, we may soon be left without effective medicines to treat serious infections.”

His warning echoes concerns raised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in hisDecember 28Mann Ki Baat address, where he cautioned against casual antibiotic use and highlighted the growing AMR threat. Citing an Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) report, PM Modi noted that antibiotics are becoming increasingly ineffective against common infections like pneumonia and urinary tract infections – a trend he stressed was “extremely worrying.”

According to a recent World Health Organization (WHO) report, one in six laboratory-confirmed bacterial infections globally in 2023 was resistant to antibiotic treatment. Between 2018 and 2023, resistance increased in over 40% of pathogen–antibiotic combinations monitored, with an average annual rise of 5-15%.