The 18-24th November 2020 marks World Antimicrobial Awareness Week and aside from supporting the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) theme “United to preserve antimicrobials” we have a raft of activities to raise awareness – and life-saving funds.
The tragic COVID-19 outbreak means that many events across the world will not go ahead as planned this year. But the coronavirus has sadly offered us a unique opportunity to let everyone see a major health crisis, first-hand.
From the need for good hand hygiene to prevent the transmission of infections to the role health workers can play in stewarding antibiotics, the WHO has a list of themes it will explore during the week.
World Antimicrobial Awareness Week
Antibiotic Research UK will be backing these with daily stories, tweets, and posts based on its extensive experience in tackling antibiotic resistance; In particular also it is organising:
- The launch of a new campaign called Change the Course. It was put together by a task force organised by the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. It includes details of how YOU can help combat the drug-resistant infections. Without intervention, these infections will kill 10 million globally per year by 2050
- The Great University Science Quiz where medical, research and other science students and societies will compete against one another in a spectacular online challenge
- The Great British (virtual) Tea Party – where you can get together in your bubble or online, enjoy tea and a slice, and raise money to find new treatments to beat antibiotic resistant infections.
Highlights from all of these activities will be posted on our Twitter (@1Antruk) and Facebook (@AntibioticResearchUK) accounts, as well as in the Latest News section of our website. Watch and listen out for us in the media, too.
Professor Colin Garner, Chief Executive of Antibiotic Research UK, said:
“Our main objectives this World Antimicrobial Awareness Week, are to show the public what a pandemic looks like. We will also discuss what impact COVID-19 has had on antibiotic usage. We’ll remind people that we can change things for the better, even now.
COVID-19 has been a devastating pandemic which. Apart from hands, face and space, the public has been able to do little about. The spectre of drug-resistance is different. 2020 has to be the year where all of us take action to curb it.”