A new report from the Indian School of Business is calling on national and regional governments to improve their practices in order to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The report highlights that over a million people in India die every year from drug-resistant pathogens. Misuse and overuse of antibiotics is causing the problem. The National Action Plan on AMR launched by the government in 2017 has attempted to address some of these issues, but it lacks focus on drug procurement, access, and stewardship practices. Only four states have action plans to contain the spread of AMR.
The report recommends modifying procurement practices, adding essential antimicrobials to state drug procurement lists, improving coordination between states, enhancing surveillance, and improving diagnostics facilities in hospitals. It also recommends creating an innovative ecosystem for antimicrobial research and development, which involves developing specific antimicrobials for the Indian context. The report highlights the urgent need for new antibiotics, as critical-priority pathogens demonstrate more than 50% resistance to over half of the available antimicrobials in the country.
Professor Sarang Deo, Executive Director of ISB Max Institute of Healthcare Management at the ISB said that innovative and implementable solutions are needed to ensure uninterrupted access to high-quality antimicrobial medicines without leading to the overuse of antibiotics. Strengthening hospital accreditation that certifies good antimicrobial stewardship practices and creating pooled procurement systems through a public-private partnership for high-end antimicrobials based on such accreditation systems is one such solution.
Javier Guzman, Director of Global Health Policy at the Center for Global Development said that the report identifies policy recommendations that key stakeholders within central and state governments can implement through both the National Action Plan on AMR and state actions plans. He believes that if implemented correctly, these recommendations could put India in a unique position to lead the world for fighting AMR and vastly improve global health security.
