Antibiotic utilization pattern in the emergency medicine ward of a tertiary health care centre: An observational study

Objective: Antibiotics are one of the most important discoveries in the field of medicine and are widely used in reducing the infections. The aim and objective of this study was to review utilization and assess the appropriateness of antimicrobial drug utilization in the medicine ward in a tertiary care hospital in Patna. This was a prospective observational study. Rationality of drug usage was also evaluated by analyzing the drug prescriptions. Materials and Methods: The data on antibiotic containing prescriptions from each patient was collected from the inpatient department and study was carried out from April to Jun, 2018. The data was collected on antibiotics was subjected for descriptive statistical analysis. Results: A total of 110 prescriptions were studied, out of which 69 (62.3%) prescriptions were mono therapy and 41(37%) prescriptions had multiple antibiotics. It was observed that out of 110 patients who were prescribed antibiotics, 61 were male (55.45%) and 49 were female (44.54%). The most commonly prescribed antibiotics were Ceftriaxone followed by ciprofloxacin and most of the prescriptions contained mono therapy. Conclusion: National guidelines for the management of common infections are needed to minimize the overuse and misuse of antimicrobial agents in tertiary care hospitals. Rational prescribing of antibiotics avoids poly-pharmacy and prevents antibiotic resistances. A large surveillance study on antimicrobial prescribing appropriateness in different hospital settings is warranted and aimed at adverse drug reaction, emergence of bacterial resistance, minimizing unnecessary cost.