Get Smart About Antibiotics Week sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), will be held from November 17 – 23, 2014.  This event is an annual effort to coordinate the work of CDC’s Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work campaign, state-based appropriate antibiotic use campaigns, non-profit partners, and private sector partners during a one week observance of antibiotic resistance and the importance of appropriate antibiotic use.  This campaign aims to reduce the rate of the rise of antibiotic resistance by:

1. promoting adherence to appropriate prescribing guidelines among providers
2. decreasing demand for antibiotics among both healthy adults and parents of young children
3. increasing adherence to prescribed antibiotics

As a partner of CDC’s Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work campaign, the Public Health Foundation (PHF) supports Get Smart About Antibiotics Week and promotes adherence to appropriate antibiotic use. PHF will assist CDC by disseminating materials that promote the appropriate use of antibiotics, engaging in active discussions on social media, and participating in CDC sponsored events.

 
In observance of Get Smart About Antibiotics Week, PHF is also offering a 10% discount on Get Smart materials offered through PHF's Online Store until November 30, 2014. Please use code GSWK14 when placing an order.

 
For more information on CDC’s Get Smart About Antibiotics Week or related materials, please email PHF.

Visit PHF's website before, during, or after Get Smart About Antibiotics Week by leaving a comment on PHF's website, connecting with us on Twitter, posting a message to the PHF Facebook page, or visiting PHF’s blog: Improving Antibiotic Use in an Age of Emerging Resistance to start or continue a discussion with other public health and health professionals and organizations.

Interested in appropriate antibiotic stewardship?  Learn about PHF’s efforts in developing and piloting a change package for public health and health care to reduce antibiotic resistance, including public health driver diagram.

Looking for training on preventing antimicrobial resistance?  Access TRAIN, the nation’s premier learning management network for professionals who protect the public's health, for related courses, including:

• M.A.S.T.E.R.: An Updated Resource for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing Training
• Weighing in on Antibiotic Resistance: Community Pharmacists Tip the Scales
• CDC Public Health Grand Rounds: The Growing Threat of Multidrug-Resistant Gonorrhea

CDC's Learning Connection also has resources you may be interested in.

 
Related Get Smart efforts include:

• Australia's Antibiotic Awareness Week is a part of a global initiative to raise awareness of antibiotic resistance and promote the responsible use of antibiotic is a part of a global initiative to raise awareness of antibiotic resistance and promote the responsible use of antibiotics.
• Canada’s Antibiotic Awareness Week is a public health campaign that deals with the threat of antibiotic resistance.
• European Antibiotic Awareness Day is an annual European public health initiative that takes place on November 18th to raise awareness about prudent antibiotic use.
• Get Smart for Healthcare focuses on improving prescribing practices in inpatient healthcare facilities. 
• Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work on the Farm promotes appropriate antibiotic use in veterinary medicine and animal agriculture.
• Oregon Alliance Working for Antibiotic Resistance Education (AWARE) is a statewide coalition that promotes the appropriate use of antibiotics.is a statewide coalition that promotes the appropriate use of antibiotics.