The Pharmaceutical Journal Vol 267 No 7176 p767-773
1 December 2001

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France tries to curb antibiotic use

The French government has launched a Fr190m (£19m) programme to reduce antibiotic misuse.

France is the largest per capita consumer of antibiotics in Europe with 100 million prescriptions per year; a figure which has been growing at 2 to 3 per cent per year for a decade. The authors of a report presented to the government this month say that 20 to 50 per cent of these prescriptions are inappropriate and encourage bacterial resistance. "Each unnecessary prescription helps to reduce our therapeutic margin," says the report. Over the next five years the programme aims to preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics by keeping closer tabs on continued use and changes in resistance. By 2005 every hospital should have an antibiotics committee and a doctor specialising in "antibiotherapy".

The consequences of poor antibiotic use is to be emphasised in the education and training of doctors. The campaign also aims to change public perceptions of antibiotics with a publicity campaign in hospitals, surgeries and on prime-time television.

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