19 November 2019 14:12

A roundtable discussion held in Ganja on World Antibiotics Awareness Week

On November 19, 2019 a roundtable discussion was held in Ganja as part of World Antibiotics Awareness Week. The event was organized jointly by World Health Organization (WHO) Country Office in Azerbaijan, the Ministry of Health and the State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance (Agency). 
The purpose of the event was to bring together partners to discuss this topic and identify the effective solutions to increase the public awareness. 
The event was attended by representatives of WHO, Ministry of Health, Agency and healthcare facilities in pilot regions. 
WHO Representative in Azerbaijan Dr. Hande Harmanci emphasized the importance of this week in her opening remarks. WHO’s specialist Dr. Javahir Suleymanova made a presentation on the state of antibiotic resistance in the world, while the representatives of the Ministry of Health Nazifa Mursalova and Hagigat Gadirova talked about the state of antibiotic resistance in Azerbaijan and effects of antibiotics on the body.
Sharafat Ismayilova, a responsible staff member of the State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance, spoke about antibiotic control mechanisms, and Inara Makayeva, a representative of the Public Health and Reforms Centre, gave a speech on the awareness campaign in the country conducted with the support of WHO.
 Within the framework of the week training sessions for medical workers will be held in Mingachevir. Surveys will be conducted in Baku and Sumgait to assess the level of antibiotic awareness among the population.
The World Antibiotic Awareness Week, held each year in November, aims to increase global awareness of antibiotic resistance, to promote proper use of antibiotics and to encourage best practices among the general public and health workers to avoid the further emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance.
Since their discovery, antibiotics have served as the cornerstone of modern medicine. However, the persistent overuse and misuse of antibiotics in human and animal health have encouraged the emergence and spread of antibiotic resistance, which occurs when microbes, such as bacteria, become resistant to the drugs used to treat them.