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Prescribing Antibiotics in Public Primary Care Clinics in Singapore: A Retrospective Cohort Study
- Source :
- Antibiotics, Vol 12, Iss 4, p 762 (2023)
- Publication Year :
- 2023
- Publisher :
- MDPI AG, 2023.
-
Abstract
- Background: Antibiotic prescription practices in primary care in Singapore have received little scholarly attention. In this study, we ascertained prescription prevalence and identified care gaps and predisposing factors. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on adults (>21 years old) at six public primary care clinics in Singapore. Prescriptions >14 days were excluded. Descriptive statistics were used to showcase the prevalence data. We used chi-square and logistic regression analyses to identify the factors affecting care gaps. Results: A total of 141,944 (4.33%) oral and 108,357 (3.31%) topical antibiotics were prescribed for 3,278,562 visits from 2018 to 2021. There was a significant reduction in prescriptions (p < 0.01) before and after the pandemic, which was attributed to the 84% reduction in prescriptions for respiratory conditions. In 2020 to 2021, oral antibiotics were most prescribed for skin (37.7%), genitourinary (20.2%), and respiratory conditions (10.8%). Antibiotic use in the “Access” group (WHO AWaRe classification) improved from 85.6% (2018) to 92.1% (2021). Areas of improvement included a lack of documentation of reasons for antibiotic use, as well as inappropriate antibiotic prescription for skin conditions. Conclusion: There was a marked reduction in antibiotic prescriptions associated with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Further studies could address the gaps identified here and evaluate private-sector primary care to inform antibiotic guidelines and the local development of stewardship programs.
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 12040762 and 20796382
- Volume :
- 12
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- Directory of Open Access Journals
- Journal :
- Antibiotics
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- edsdoj.0e8cc234f2684840a9543530eb7c660f
- Document Type :
- article
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics12040762