Soon hospitals will have to adhere to infection control guidelines. In a bid to contain anti-microbial resistance, the government has approved '30-crore national programme on containment of anti-microbial resistance under which a network of 30 quality assured laboratories for anti-microbial resistance surveillance would be established.
Soon hospitals will have to adhere to infection control guidelines. In a bid to contain anti-microbial resistance, the government has approved '30-crore national programme on containment of anti-microbial resistance under which a network of 30 quality assured laboratories for anti-microbial resistance surveillance would be established. According to the new scheme which will be undertaken initially in Delhi and later expanded to other states in a phased manner, each laboratory will be provided with '15-20 lakhs for equipment, reagents and manpower every year. The move gains significance as indiscriminate use of antibiotics has resulted in many pathogens turning resistant to first- and second-line drugs. In 2010, reports of superbug originating in South Asia stirred a national debate after which the Union health ministry started taking steps. The implementation of the new national programme on the containment of anti-microbial resistance to be implemented during the 12th Plan period is in response to the scare created in 2010. “As of now we do not have any base line data with the regard to the prevalence of resistance in India. The networking of the laboratories will help get that based on which future steps will be carried,” said a senior official in the ministry. Under the new policy, training programmes will be undertaken for the microbiologists, lab technicians, clinicians, pharmacists, data managers and data-entry operators. As per the scheme, the National Centre for Disease Control will monitor and review the programme.
