Antimicrobial stewardship in wound care

A new position paper has been published for clinicians dealing with wounds in general. This position paper on antimicrobial stewardship in wound care is a must read for any clinician who deals with wounds on a weekly basis.

Aside from diabetic foot infections, which play host to a niche array parameters that are distinctly different from people who do not have diabetes, many patients with or without diabetes will present with wounds that become infected. Given the great antibiotic resistance debate it is of paramount importance that clinicians are acutely aware of the requirement to consider antimicrobial stewardship in the context of reducing the unnecessary use of antibiotics.

This position paper is driven directly for clinicians dealing with wounds, where the use of antibiotics is common, and in cases unnecessary. The document provides guidance for clinicians on diagnosing infections, optimal culture and specimen collection and how to engage with antimicrobial stewardship. Applying principles of antimicrobial stewardship to the care of your patients with wounds should help to reduce the unnecessary use of systemic or topical antibiotic therapy and ensure the safest and most clinically effective therapy for infected wounds.

As this paper is written for clinicians, freely available online, and with the importance of careful use of antibiotic treatment, we encourage everyone to read this.