In a new achievement for the Kingdom, the World Health Organization (WHO) has published the Saudi National Action Plan developed by the Ministry of Health (MOH) to Combat Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria.
According to MOH, this action plan is in place owing to the risks of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) on public health; thus, requiring different actions, as well as joint collaboration between government agencies, the private sector and the community at large.
"The Kingdom has joined the Global Health Safety Agenda (GHSA) sine early March 2015. GHSA is designed to initiate a global partnership to make the world secure and safe from the threat of infectious diseases, and to take part in the Agenda divisions, including antibiotic-resistant germs and the use of indicative assessment tools to assess the primary capacities of member states to the Agenda's objectives.", stressed MOH.
It is noted that the Kingdom's National Committee for the National Action Plan to Combat Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria is initiated in 2017, including all health sectors, government agencies and private bodies. More five sub-committees have been set up to implement the Plan's provisions, including: Awareness Committee for Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria, Lab Monitoring Committee for Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria, Infection Control Committee, Optimization of Antibiotic Use Committee, and the Committee on Pharma-economics Studies and Research for for Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria.
The committee assumes several assignments, including: managing antibiotic-resistant germs across the Kingdom, in terms of developing the Plan's policies, strategies, plans and protocols, roadmap and annual reports. Also, for the first time, the Kingdom joins the Global Surveillance Program for Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria through WHO's Lab Monitoring Program.