AHRQ releases approach to antibiotic stewardship

This week, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) released its latest antibiotic stewardship resource: Toolkit To Improve Antibiotic Use in Acute Care Hospitals. This resource guides users through AHRQ’s signature "Four Moments of Antibiotic Decision Making," a step-by-step approach to achieving optimal antibiotic prescribing. AHRQ recommends acute care facilities use the toolkit to develop or strengthen antibiotic stewardship programs and improve patient outcomes. AHRQ based the toolkit’s guidance on the experiences of more than 400 hospitals that participated in AHRQ's Safety Program for Improving Antibiotic Use. The toolkit includes best practices for diagnosis and treatment of infections, approaches to improve safety culture and sustain overall success, and tactical recommendations to demonstrate the value of an antibiotic stewardship program to hospital administrators and prescribers. (AHRQ News Now story, 11/12/19)