Urgent care clinics are prescribing too many inappropriate antibiotics

Researchers from The Pew Charitable and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have conducted a new retrospective cohort study to compare antibiotic prescribing among urgent care centers, retail clinics, emergency departments, and medical offices. The highest antibiotic prescribing rate was observed in urgent care centers. About 46 % of all urgent care visits for non-antibiotic recommended diagnoses resulted in an antibiotic prescription. Majority of antibiotics prescribed in these settings were associated with diagnoses of acute respiratory conditions for which antibiotics are often not recommended. This study shows that antibiotic stewardship efforts are needed in urgent care centers to help reduce inappropriate prescribing.

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Read more: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2687524