The health ministry, in an effort to control the “over-prescription” of antimicrobial drugs has written to doctors nation-wide to “mandatorily mention exact indication/reason/justification while prescribing antimicrobials.”
What was said: In a letter issued on 1 January, Dr Atul Goel, the Director General of Health Services, wrote:
“Misuse and overuse of anti-microbials is one of the main drivers in the emergence of drug-resistant pathogens. With few new antibiotics in the Research & Development pipeline, prudent antibiotic use is the only option to delay the development of resistance.”