The Ministry of Health (MOH), represented by the Pharmaceutical Care General Department, is carrying out awareness activities and events, during the World Antimicrobial Awareness Week. These events will be taking place in all hospitals and health centers from 18 to 24 November 2020, under the slogan (Dear Pharmacists…We Unite to Save Antimicrobials).
These activities aim to stop the further emergence and spread of drug-resistant infections as their resistance to a broad group of drugs grows. The activities also aim to highlight pharmacists’ role in reducing the incorrect use of antibiotics. Moreover, these activities seek to reinforce a global understanding of the state of antimicrobials every year. The World Antimicrobial Awareness Week mainly aims to raise awareness of the dangers of antimicrobial resistance globally and shed light on the importance of this week worldwide.
Noteworthy, antimicrobial resistance occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites acquire resistance to the effect of medications. This results in common types of the infection becoming more difficult to treat, and increases the risk of disease, severe illness, and even death. Many factors have caused the risk of antimicrobial resistance around the world to exacerbate. These factors include the excessive use of medications, and the misuse of drugs in humans, as well as in the livestock and agricultural sectors, and the lack of clean water, environmental sanitation, and hygiene.