The World Health Organization has presented a new global strategy to curb antimicrobial resistance, with the backing of the pharmaceutical industry. The plan promotes the prudent use of these drugs, drives research into new treatments, and seeks to improve surveillance of resistant infections. Collaboration between governments, companies, and health systems is considered essential to maintain the effectiveness of these essential medications.
Genomic surveillance and open data platforms as technical tools 🧬
The initiative bets on real-time genomic surveillance systems to identify patterns of bacterial resistance. It proposes the use of open data platforms that allow laboratories and hospitals to share information about resistant strains. It also encourages the development of rapid diagnostics based on PCR and sequencing, which would facilitate the precise prescription of antibiotics. However, integrating these technologies into health systems with limited resources remains a significant technical and economic obstacle.
The perfect plan that only requires no one to forget to implement it 🦠
The WHO has designed a plan so comprehensive that it even has the approval of pharmaceutical companies, something like getting a fox to sign an agreement to guard the henhouse. The proposal includes incentives to research new antibiotics, but no one has explained how to convince a company to invest millions in a drug that will be sold sparingly to avoid resistance. Perhaps the solution is to ask microbes to be more considerate of development timelines.