Literature Review
The majority of the literature agrees that antibiotic resistance is a serious issue that results mainly due to the overuse and misuse of antibiotics. This issue is causing a large financial impact on the health care system. A study conducted by Rajasekar, Guest, and Bodansky (2015), analyzed the medical records of 100 patients in order to ascertain whether or not these patients actually had illnesses that could be treated with antibiotics, or if the antibiotics were misused. The study discovered that over 40% of the patients were prescribed antibiotics even though there was no solid proof that they were suffering from an infection that could be cured by antibiotics (Rajasekar et al., 2015). Further studies have corroborated …show more content…
Not only does antibiotic resistance impact patient care, it also has financial consequences as well. According to the article called Outpatient Antibiotic Prescribing in the United States: 2000 to 2010, by Lee et al. (2014) it is estimated that antibiotic resistances results in an expenditure of about $60 billion dollars each year. Gandra, Barter, and Laxminarayan (2014) found a similar figure, and estimated that the economic burden of antibiotic resistance was roughly $55 billion in 2000. This substantial figure includes patient costs, hospital costs, as well as indirect costs. Gandra et al. (2014) estimated that “productivity losses constituted 64% of the total estimated $55 billion for the USA” because of illness or death related to antibiotic resistance (para …show more content…
Antibiotics are often prescribed without a confirmed diagnosis of an illness that can be treated and cured with antibiotics about 40% of the time (Rajasekar et al., 2015). Furthermore, it is estimated that about half of all antibiotic prescriptions are unnecessary because the illness that the patient is suffering from cannot be treated with antibiotics, such as a cold or respiratory infection (Lee et al., 2014).
However, the misuse of antibiotics is not the only thing that has contributed to this issue, as roughly 80% of antibiotics are used in the livestock industry, often to act as preventive care or to encourage growth (Duckenfield, 2011). Regardless, both of these factors have contributed to the development of antibiotic resistant bacteria, such as MRSA which has negatively impacted our health care system by resulting in the loss of life, decreased quality of patient care, and increased health costs (Gould,
The majority of the literature agrees that antibiotic resistance is a serious issue that results mainly due to the overuse and misuse of antibiotics. This issue is causing a large financial impact on the health care system. A study conducted by Rajasekar, Guest, and Bodansky (2015), analyzed the medical records of 100 patients in order to ascertain whether or not these patients actually had illnesses that could be treated with antibiotics, or if the antibiotics were misused. The study discovered that over 40% of the patients were prescribed antibiotics even though there was no solid proof that they were suffering from an infection that could be cured by antibiotics (Rajasekar et al., 2015). Further studies have corroborated …show more content…
Not only does antibiotic resistance impact patient care, it also has financial consequences as well. According to the article called Outpatient Antibiotic Prescribing in the United States: 2000 to 2010, by Lee et al. (2014) it is estimated that antibiotic resistances results in an expenditure of about $60 billion dollars each year. Gandra, Barter, and Laxminarayan (2014) found a similar figure, and estimated that the economic burden of antibiotic resistance was roughly $55 billion in 2000. This substantial figure includes patient costs, hospital costs, as well as indirect costs. Gandra et al. (2014) estimated that “productivity losses constituted 64% of the total estimated $55 billion for the USA” because of illness or death related to antibiotic resistance (para …show more content…
Antibiotics are often prescribed without a confirmed diagnosis of an illness that can be treated and cured with antibiotics about 40% of the time (Rajasekar et al., 2015). Furthermore, it is estimated that about half of all antibiotic prescriptions are unnecessary because the illness that the patient is suffering from cannot be treated with antibiotics, such as a cold or respiratory infection (Lee et al., 2014).
However, the misuse of antibiotics is not the only thing that has contributed to this issue, as roughly 80% of antibiotics are used in the livestock industry, often to act as preventive care or to encourage growth (Duckenfield, 2011). Regardless, both of these factors have contributed to the development of antibiotic resistant bacteria, such as MRSA which has negatively impacted our health care system by resulting in the loss of life, decreased quality of patient care, and increased health costs (Gould,