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Objective: The authors had for aim to study the relationship between antibiotic policies and antibiotic consumption in hospitals., Design: A component analysis was used to summarize the various measures of the antibiotic policies developed by hospitals. Antibiotics consumption was expressed as a number of Daily Defined Doses per 1,000 patient-days. The relation was studied by a multiple linear regression model with adjustment on hospital activity., Results: The first component illustrated an active program of antibiotic policies associating: a local antibiotic committee, an infectious diseases consultant, written local guidelines for prescriptions and restrictive measures before dispensing. The highest antibiotic consumption was associated with active policies, especially for carbapenems, glycopeptides, and aminoglycosides. However the relationship differed according to the type of hospital, with lower antibiotic consumption, especially for penicillins, in private hospitals that had more active policies., Conclusion: The difference between public and private hospitals could be explained by the type of institution but also by the unit used to measure antibiotic consumption.

Objective: Increasing antimicrobial resistance in bacteria is a major health problem and requires the implementation of stringent policies to optimize the use of antibiotics., Design: In 2003 the authors conducted a study in southwestern French hospitals, using a questionnaire to assess the implementation of antibiotic policies according to national guidelines issued by the French government in 2002., Results: The most frequent actions quoted by the 99 respondents were: issuing of a list of available antibiotics, issuing of information regarding antibiotic consumption and bacterial resistance, and control of antibiotics dispensation. Local guidelines were available in 45% of hospitals for curative treatment and in 87% for antibioprophylaxis in surgery. The evaluation of antibiotic use and computer links between clinical settings, pharmacy and microbiology lab were the less widespread measures. The number and type of actions were related to hospital size and activity., Conclusions: These findings support that policies for an appropriate use of antimicrobials should be reinforced by issuing treatment guidelines and specific tools for dispensation and evaluation. This survey also emphasizes the need for appropriate policies relating to the size and medical activities of healthcare institutions.