HÀ NỘI – Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has asked the Ministry of Health to inspect the implementation of regulations in antibiotic prescription and use in medical facilities. 

The PM assigned the ministry to seek measures to effectively monitor the performance of the regulations and strictly handle violations. 

He also requested the ministries of agriculture and rural development, industry and trade, and natural resources and environment to assess the effectiveness of the national action plan on preventing antibiotic resistance for the 2013-2020 period and apply measures to enhance its efficacy.

The Ministry of Health has been tasked with inspecting pharmacies’ observation of regulations on selling prescription medicines and taking measures to manage the enforcement of the rules, particularly focusing on antibiotics. 

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has been requested to strengthen the management of the production, import, trading and use of antibiotic in animal husbandry and aquaculture, while designing guidance on the use of animal feed containing antibiotic. The PM asked the two ministries to co-ordinate in managing the import of antibiotic materials used in the production and use of veterinary medicine. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) or drug resistance is a risk to Việt Nam’s people and economy following the increase in antibiotic use and lax management of antibiotic use in healthcare and animal husbandry. 

The cost of healthcare for patients with resistant infections is higher than care for patients with non-resistant infections due to the longer duration of illness, additional tests and use of more expensive drugs, according to medical experts.

According to WHO, AMR results in some 700,000 global deaths per year. By 2050, the number of deaths attributed to AMR is estimated to be 10 million per year, more than the estimate for cancer and 10 times more than the estimate for diabetes.— VNS