Peter S. Jones

Antimicrobial stewardship knowledge, attitudes, and practices among health care professionals at small community hospitals

Background Very little is known about antimicrobial stewardship knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) among health care practitioners in small, community hospitals (SCHs) compared to large community hospitals (LCHs). Objective To compare infectious diseases (ID) clinical resources and describe KAP pertaining to antimicrobial stewardship among prescribers, pharmacists, and administrators from a large hospital network including a comparison between SCHs and LCHs. Methods An anonymous 48-item antimicrobial stewardship KAP survey was administered to pharmacists, prescribers, and administrators at 15 SCH (<200 beds) and 5 LCHs (>200 beds) within an integrated health care network. Results In total, 588 (14%) completed the survey: 198 from SCHs and 390 from LCHs. Most respondents were familiar or very familiar with the term antimicrobial stewardship and felt that antimicrobial stewardship was necessary. Most pharmacists and prescribers agreed that antimicrobials were overused at their hospital. However, SCH pharmacists and prescribers were more likely to disagree that antibiotic resistance is a significant problem locally. Pharmacists saw restrictions as a reasonable method of controlling antibiotic use more than prescribers. SCH practitioners were less familiar with IDSA guidelines and less likely to rely on ID specialists to a greater extent than LCH practitioners. Most respondents strongly agreed they would like more antimicrobial education. Conclusion SCH and LCH pharmacists, prescribers, and administrators are aware of antimicrobial resistance and overuse and agree that antimicrobial stewardship programs are necessary. SCHs are less likely to contact ID for information. These results support the development of antimicrobial stewardship programs at SCHs, while recognizing the significant differences in availability and utilization of resources.