The Choosing Wisely campaign has these messages for health professionals about using antibiotics wisely.
Whatu Tāniko pattern
Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases
Do not use antibiotics in asymptomatic bacteriuria.
Do not take a swab or use antibiotics for the management of a leg ulcer without clinical infection.
Avoid prescribing antibiotics for upper respiratory tract infection (with the exception of sore throat in populations at high risk for complication of group A infection, such as acute rheumatic fever or post-streptococcal glomulornephritis).
Australian and New Zealand Society for Geriatric Medicine
Do not use antimicrobials to treat bacteriuria in older adults where specific urinary tract symptoms are not present.
College of Intensive Care Medicine of Australia And New Zealand
Consider antibiotic de-escalation daily.
Internal Medicine Society of Australia and New Zealand
Once patients have become afebrile (non-feverish) and are clinically improving, don’t continue prescribing intravenous antibiotics to those with uncomplicated infections and no high-risk features if they are tolerant of oral antibiotics.
New Zealand and Australian Societies of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery
Don’t prescribe oral antibiotics for uncomplicated acute discharge from grommets.
Don’t prescribe oral antibiotics for uncomplicated acute otitis externa.
New Zealand Dermatological Society
Don’t use oral antibiotics for the treatment of atopic dermatitis unless there is clinical evidence of infection.
Don’t routinely use topical antibiotics on a surgical wound.
Paediatrics & Child Health
Do not routinely prescribe oral antibiotics to children with fever without an identified bacterial infection.