Antimicrobial Resistance

Syllabus: Health

Source: DTE

Context: Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) poses a grave threat to human, animal, and environmental health worldwide, including India. Despite advancements in medical sciences, AMR challenges global health progress, with projections of 10 million deaths annually by 2050.

What is AMR?

• Definition: AMR occurs when microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites evolve to resist antimicrobial drugs, rendering them ineffective.

• Impact: AMR complicates treatments, increases healthcare costs, prolongs illnesses, and risks lives globally.

Causes of AMR:

• Overuse of Antibiotics: Unregulated sale and over-the-counter availability of antibiotics. Over-prescription for minor or non-bacterial infections.

• Underuse or Misuse: Non-adherence to prescribed dosages or courses.

• Industrial Agriculture Practices: Antibiotics used as growth promoters in livestock, fisheries, and poultry. Poor waste management from farms increases AMR in the environment.

• Lack of Diagnostic Infrastructure: Inadequate facilities for proper disease diagnosis and treatment.

• Inadequate Training: Healthcare providers often lack awareness of rational antibiotic use.

• COVID-19 Pandemic Misuse: Rampant and indiscriminate use of antibiotics during the pandemic exacerbated AMR.

India’s Approach to AMR:

• National Action Plan (NAP): Launched in 2017, it focuses on rational antibiotic use and AMR surveillance.

• AMR Surveillance and Research Network (AMRSN): Established by ICMR in 2013, monitoring resistance patterns across 30 tertiary hospitals.

• One Health Approach: Focus on interconnected health across human, animal, and environmental sectors. Collaborative initiatives like Integrated One Health Surveillance Network.

• National One Health Mission: Approved in 2022, it targets AMR, zoonotic diseases, and environmental health.

• Policy Guidelines: NCDC developed national guidelines for treatment and infection control.

• Zoonotic Disease Programmes: National Programme for Prevention and Control of Zoonoses under One Health.

Challenges yet to be addressed:

• Lack of behavioural and social science data: Limited understanding of community-level antibiotic usage patterns.

• Structural disparities: Unequal access to healthcare, particularly in rural and underserved regions.

• Insufficient community engagement: Poor implementation of awareness campaigns and behavioural change initiatives.

• Inadequate workforce training: Outdated curricula and lack of inter-sectoral training for professionals.

• Surveillance gaps: Inconsistent data collection from community and tertiary levels.

Way ahead:

• Strengthen surveillance systems: Expand monitoring to include community-level data for better health planning.

• Enhance public awareness: Implement targeted campaigns on antibiotic stewardship and AMR risks.

• Policy implementation: Enforce stricter regulations on over-the-counter antibiotic sales.

• Inter-sectoral collaboration: Strengthen the One Health approach across human, animal, and environmental sectors.

• Update curricula and training: Regularly revise professional training to include AMR and integrated health strategies.

• Focus on resource allocation: Ensure equitable distribution of resources for implementing AMR strategies effectively.

Conclusion

Addressing AMR is critical for sustaining global health progress and achieving SDG targets. India’s initiatives, including the One Health Mission and AMR surveillance, provide a robust foundation. However, success requires bridging regulatory, social, and infrastructural gaps through a collaborative, multi-sectoral approach that ensures equitable healthcare for all.

Insta Links:

• Antimicrobial-resistance

Which of the following are the reasons for the occurrence of multi-drug resistance in microbial pathogens in India? (UPSC-2019)

• Genetic predisposition of some people

• Taking incorrect doses of antibiotics to cure diseases

• Using antibiotics in livestock farming

• Multiple chronic diseases in some people

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

(a) 1 and 2

(b) 2 and 3 only

(d) 2, 3 and 4

Answer: b)