Antibiotic Stewardship
Awarded with
1 CPD HOURS
Antibiotic Stewardship | Module Overview
In medical practice, the appropriate use of antibiotics is essential to combat antimicrobial resistance and ensure effective patient care. Antibiotic stewardship requires a thorough understanding of prescribing principles, resistance mechanisms, and the impact of inappropriate antibiotic use. The ability to make informed prescribing decisions can significantly improve patient outcomes and help preserve the efficacy of existing treatments. This CPD module will explore key aspects of antibiotic stewardship, providing strategies to optimise antibiotic use while minimising the risks of resistance and adverse effects.
The module is based on 10 clinical case scenarios with associated MCQs and each explanation provides further reading material to refresh your knowledge of each diagnosis. Once you complete the module — and achieve the minimum pass rate of 60% — you'll be awarded with a downloadable 1 hour CPD Certificate, which you can print or upload to your annual CPD Portfolio.
Aims & Objectives
On completion of this CPD module, you will be able to:
Utilise the narrowest-spectrum antibiotic appropriate for the clinical condition.
Select antibiotics that minimise disruption to the normal gut microbiome and have fewer adverse effects.
Base antibiotic choice on local susceptibility and resistance data relevant to the healthcare setting.
Consider an early switch to oral antibiotics, when appropriate, and recognise its clinical benefits.
Recognise situations where antimicrobial therapy is unnecessary to avoid inappropriate prescribing.
Identify circumstances where restricting broad-spectrum antibiotic use may be detrimental, ensuring antimicrobial stewardship principles are applied judiciously.
Assess antimicrobial prescriptions for redundant coverage and optimise regimens accordingly.
Select antibiotics based on the target organ to maximise therapeutic efficacy.
Understand the pharmacokinetics of antimicrobial agents and adjust dosing for optimal clinical outcomes.
Develop expertise in the antimicrobial management of chronic wounds.
Recognise risk factors for Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) and exercise caution when prescribing antibiotics to patients with a history of CDI.
Antibiotic Stewardship CPD Expert Authors
Meet the authors who have contributed to our Antibiotic Stewardship CPD Module. Our entire faculty have the right experience, qualifications and expertise that make them the perfect candidates to write high-quality, relevant material for our secondary care CPD modules..
Click a photo to read their biographies...
Dr Krishnadas Thulasidoss
MBBS, MRCP (UK), FRCP (Glasgow), AFHEA (UK)
I am a Senior Consultant Physician, Academic and Medical Educator with expertise in Acute Medicine, Rheumatology, and Medical Education. I hold specialist certifications in Acute Medicine and Rheumatology (UK), the EULAR European Certification in Rheumatology (EU), and a Diploma in Echocardiography (India).
As an Associate Fellow of the Advance Higher Education Academy (UK), I am actively involved in postgraduate medical education. I serve as a Recognised Tutor at the University of South Wales, supporting the Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) and MSc programmes in both Acute Medicine and Rheumatology. Additionally, I am a Recognised Tutor at the University of Buckingham, contributing to the Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) and MSc programmes in Stroke Medicine.
I also worked as a subeditor and content contributor for StudyPRN.com, where I have developed content for the Specialist Certificate Exam (SCE) revision resources in Acute Medicine and Rheumatology and the European Board Examination in Emergency Medicine (EBEEM). I have also been a member of the Question Writing Group (QWG) for MRCP (UK) Exams at the Royal College of Physicians, UK.
Dr. Nivedhana Subburaju
MBBS, MD (Microbiology), Diploma in Tropical Medicine & Hygiene (UK), Dip RCPath – Medical Microbiology (UK)
I am a Medical Microbiologist with expertise in tropical medicine, infectious diseases, hospital infection prevention and control, and antimicrobial stewardship. Currently, I serve as the Senior Consultant Clinical Microbiologist & Chairperson of Hospital Infection Control at a tertiary hospital in India.
I am a member of several professional societies, including the Indian Association of Medical Microbiologists, the Hospital Infection Society (India), the Healthcare Infection Society (UK), and the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (UK). I am also part of the Study PRN /Learna, UK authoring team and a tutor for the PGDip Infectious Disease programme at the University of Buckingham, UK.
My work extends to research and surveillance, including my involvement in the ICMR (Indian Council for Medical Research) Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Surveillance project. I am currently engaged in multi-centric studies on paediatric and hospital-acquired infections at the Christian Medical College, Vellore, India, a renowned quaternary care hospital.
I have actively contributed to research projects and have authored indexed medical journal articles and textbook chapters on infectious diseases, antimicrobial resistance, and diagnostic microbiology. I have also led Quality Control and accreditation programmes for microbiology and serology laboratories and have played a key role as Infection Control Officer and Chairperson in securing National Accreditation Board certification for my hospital.
As an educator, I am passionate about teaching and training. I frequently speak at conferences, workshops, and webinars and am actively involved in the training of postgraduate students, resident doctors, nurses, and biomedical scientists.
A few of my prominent publications can be found below:
Author of a Chapter of Textbook in Paediatric Infectious Diseases:
Siddarth Ramji, PSN Menon, Piyush Gupta, Rakesh Lodha (2015) PG Textbook of Pediatrics: Infections and Systemic Disorders (Volume 2) – 4th Edition Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers (P) Ltd. Ch 33.8 Histoplasmosis
Scientific Publication in the Journal ‘Microbiology Spectrum’:
Bakthavatchalam YD, Elangovan D, Jaganathan SV, Subburaju N, Shankar A, Manokaran Y, J S, Devi R, Baveja S, Devi S, S J, Bhattacharya S, S M R, Yesudhason B, Shetty V, Mutreja A, Manesh A, Varghese GM, Marwick CA, Parcell BJ, Gilbert IH, Veeraraghavan B. In Vitro Activity of Two Cefepime-Based Novel Combinations, Cefepime/Taniborbactam and Cefepime/Zidebactam, against Carbapenemase-Expressing Enterobacterales Collected in India. Microbiol Spectr. 2023 Feb 27;11(2):e0492522. doi: 10.1128/spectrum.04925-22. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36847537; PMCID: PMC10100882.
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As a healthcare professional, it's important for you to continuously expand on your clinical knowledge, skills and abilities. Our CPD modules will help you achieve this by providing you with a full explanation of answers, further reading, and the option to reflect using our online notes system.