Living busy lives can sometimes lead to taking our health for granted. People are so caught up in the lifestyle that they choose to live in that even when they are sick or feel under the weather they would instantly pop a pill that they can buy over the counter or whenever it seems severe, they would self-prescribe some antibiotics which have worked for some of their previous illness. Little did they know that by doing this, they are actually spreading antibiotic-resistant bacteria. According to an article in Indian Express said that doctors feel pressured when they need to prescribe antibiotics to patients.
A Britain-based survey said that because of this pressure, doctors reduce the prescription of these antibiotics. This also means that there is a lower patient satisfaction. Some findings said thatThere was a recorded 25 percent decrease of antibiotic prescription by a general practitioner which corresponds to about 5 to 6 points reduction on the GP (general practice) satisfaction ratings. There were 7,800 general practices that were analysed records which is mostly in England.
Lead author of the study Mark Ashworth from King's College, London said that many patients come to the GP's clinic and asking for antibiotics when they have viral infections like coughs, sore throat or flu. However, these antibiotics cannot treat viruses. The GP's often find it difficult to refuse and feels pressured when these patients asked for antibiotic prescription. When antibiotic is prescribed inappropriately along with the using it casually may contribute to the development of resistant bacteria.
Ashworth added that these findings suggests that practices to limit the prescription of antibiotic in order to prevent the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria will be likely to result in a decrease of patient satisfaction ratings. These results were consistent with a previous study that found patients who didn't take or receive antibiotics expressed their dissatisfaction.
