Publications
122 results found
Alnaimi S, Rawson T, Holmes A, 2018, 1472. Antibiotic de-escalation compared with continued empirical treatment in non-ventilated hospital-acquired pneumonia., Open forum infectious diseases, Vol: 5, Pages: S455-S456, ISSN: 2328-8957
Background: Antibiotic de-escalation is an important component of antimicrobial stewardship programs. Nosocomial pneumonia is the most common healthcare-associated infection with nonventilated hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) comprising the majority of cases. We aimed to compare antibiotic de-escalation with continued empirical treatment in terms of clinical outcomes in nonventilated HAP.MethodsA retrospective cohort study was conducted including patients meeting the American Thoracic Society criteria for HAP. This compared de-escalated HAP patients to those continued on empirical treatment across three hospitals in West London over 3 months. The primary outcome was the length of stay (LOS), and secondary outcomes were duration of treatment and cost of hospital stay. Effects were adjusted for confounders using multivariate linear regression models.ResultsEighty patients with HAP were identified. Overall, 22/80 (27.5%) had therapy de-escalated and 47/80 (58.8%) continued empirical treatment. A total of 58 patients survived and were included in the analysis, 20 in de-escalation and 38 in continued empirical treatment. Length of stay was shorter in de-escalation by −7.2 (95% CI −12.2, −3.0) days, P < 0.01, with an adjusted difference of −3.2 (95% CI −8.3, 1.9) days, P = 0.21. The duration of treatment was shorter in de-escalation by −3.4 (95% CI −5.8, −0.9) days, P < 0.01, with an adjusted difference of −2.6 (95% CI −5.2, 0.1) days, P = 0.06. The cost of hospital stay was lower in de-escalation by £-2, 907.37 (95% CI −4,865.31, −949.43), P < 0.01, with an adjusted difference of £-1,290.00 (95% CI −3,320.75, 740.74), P = 0.21.ConclusionIn HAP, 27.5% of patients were de-escalated. There was no difference in LOS, duration of treatment, and cost of hospital stay between de-escalation and continued empirical treatment on adjustment for confounders. Future work should explore
Herrero P, Rawson TM, Philip A, et al., 2018, Closed-loop control for precision antimicrobial delivery: an In silico proof-of-concept, IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, Vol: 65, Pages: 2231-2236, ISSN: 0018-9294
IEEE Objective: Inappropriate dosing of patients with antibiotics is a driver of antimicrobial resistance, toxicity, and poor outcomes of therapy. In this paper, we investigate, in silico, the hypothesis that the use of a closed-loop control system could improve the attainment of pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic targets for antimicrobial therapy, where wide variations in target attainment have been reported. This includes patients in critical care, patients with renal disease and patients with obesity.
Abbara A, Rawson T, Karah N, et al., 2018, A summary and appraisal of existing evidence of antimicrobial resistance in the Syrian conflict, International Journal of Infectious Diseases, Vol: 75, Pages: 26-33, ISSN: 1201-9712
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in populations experiencing war has yet to be addressed despite the abundance of contemporary conflicts and the protracted nature of twenty-first century wars, in combination with growing global concern over conflict-associated bacterial pathogens. We use the example of the Syrian conflict to explore the feasibility of using existing global policies on AMR in conditions of extreme conflict. Available literature on AMR and prescribing behaviour in Syria before and since the onset of the conflict in March 2011 was identified. Overall, there is a paucity of rigorous data before and since the onset of conflict in Syria to contextualise the burden of AMR. However, post- onset of the conflict an increasing number of studies conducted in neighboring countries and Europe report AMR in Syrian refugees. High rates of multi-drug resistance, particularly Gram-negative organisms, are noted amongst Syrian refugees when compared with local populations. Conflict impedes many of the safeguards against AMR, creates new drivers, and exacerbates existing ones. Given the apparently high rates of AMR in Syria, in neighboring countries hosting refugees and in European countries providing asylum; this requires WHO and other global health institutions to address the causes, costs, and future considerations of conflict-related AMR as an issue of global governance.
Abdolrasouli A, Petrou MA, Park H, et al., 2018, Surveillance for azole-resistant Aspergillus fumigatus in a centralized diagnostic mycology service, London, United Kingdom, 1998-2017, Frontiers in Microbiology, Vol: 9, ISSN: 1664-302X
Background/Objectives: Aspergillus fumigatus is the leading cause of invasive aspergillosis. Treatment is hindered by the emergence of resistance to triazole antimycotic agents. Here, we present the prevalence of triazole resistance among clinical isolates at a major centralized medical mycology laboratory in London, United Kingdom, in the period 1998–2017.Methods: A large number (n = 1469) of clinical A. fumigatus isolates from unselected clinical specimens were identified and their susceptibility against three triazoles, amphotericin B and three echinocandin agents was carried out. All isolates were identified phenotypically and antifungal susceptibility testing was carried out by using a standard broth microdilution method.Results: Retrospective surveillance (1998–2011) shows 5/1151 (0.43%) isolates were resistant to at least one of the clinically used triazole antifungal agents. Prospective surveillance (2015–2017) shows 7/356 (2.2%) isolates were resistant to at least one triazole antifungals demonstrating an increase in incidence of triazole-resistant A. fumigatus in our laboratory. Among five isolates collected from 2015 to 2017 and available for molecular testing, three harbored TR34/L98H alteration in the cyp51A gene that are associated with the acquisition of resistance in the non-patient environment.Conclusion: These data show that historically low prevalence of azole resistance may be increasing, warranting further surveillance of susceptible patients.
Alividza V, Mariano V, Ahmad R, et al., 2018, Investigating the impact of poverty on colonization and infection with drug-resistant organisms in humans: a systematic review, Infectious Diseases of Poverty, Vol: 7, ISSN: 2049-9957
BackgroundPoverty increases the risk of contracting infectious diseases and therefore exposure to antibiotics. Yet there is lacking evidence on the relationship between income and non-income dimensions of poverty and antimicrobial resistance. Investigating such relationship would strengthen antimicrobial stewardship interventions.MethodsA systematic review was conducted following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. PubMed, Ovid, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, CINAHL, PsychINFO, EBSCO, HMIC, and Web of Science databases were searched in October 2016. Prospective and retrospective studies reporting on income or non-income dimensions of poverty and their influence on colonisation or infection with antimicrobial-resistant organisms were retrieved. Study quality was assessed with the Integrated quality criteria for review of multiple study designs (ICROMS) tool.ResultsNineteen articles were reviewed. Crowding and homelessness were associated with antimicrobial resistance in community and hospital patients. In high-income countries, low income was associated with Streptococcus pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii resistance and a seven-fold higher infection rate. In low-income countries the findings on this relation were contradictory. Lack of education was linked to resistant S. pneumoniae and Escherichia coli. Two papers explored the relation between water and sanitation and antimicrobial resistance in low-income settings.ConclusionsDespite methodological limitations, the results suggest that addressing social determinants of poverty worldwide remains a crucial yet neglected step towards preventing antimicrobial resistance.
Abbara A, Rawson T, Karah N, et al., 2018, Antimicrobial resistance in the context of the Syrian conflict: drivers before and after the onset of conflict and key recommendations, International Journal of Infectious Diseases, Vol: 73, Pages: 1-6, ISSN: 1201-9712
Current evidence describing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in the context of the Syrian conflict is of poor quality and sparse in nature. This paper explores and reports the major drivers of AMR that were present in Syria pre-conflict and those that have emerged since its onset in March 2011. Drivers that existed before the conflict included a lack of enforcement of existing legislation to regulate over-the-counter antibiotics and notification of communicable diseases. This contributed to a number of drivers of AMR after the onset of conflict, and these were also compounded by the exodus of trained staff, the increase in overcrowding and unsanitary conditions, the increase in injuries, and economic sanctions limiting the availability of required laboratory medical materials and equipment. Addressing AMR in this context requires pragmatic, multifaceted action at the local, regional, and international levels to detect and manage potentially high rates of multidrug-resistant infections. Priorities are (1) the development of a competent surveillance system for hospital-acquired infections, (2) antimicrobial stewardship, and (3) the creation of cost-effective and implementable infection control policies. However, it is only by addressing the conflict and immediate cessation of the targeting of health facilities that the rehabilitation of the health system, which is key to addressing AMR in this context, can progress.
Hernandez B, Herrero P, Rawson TM, et al., 2018, Enhancing antimicrobial surveillance: an automated, dynamic and interactive approach, 18th International Congress on Infectious Disease, Publisher: Elsevier, Pages: 122-122, ISSN: 1201-9712
Rawson TM, Gowers S, Rogers M, et al., 2018, Towards a minimally invasive device for continuous monitoring of beta-lactam antibiotics, Publisher: ELSEVIER SCI LTD, Pages: 109-109, ISSN: 1201-9712
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Rawson TM, 2018, Individualized approaches to infection management, Publisher: ELSEVIER SCI LTD, Pages: 77-77, ISSN: 1201-9712
Rawson T, Sivakumaran P, Lobo R, et al., 2018, Development of a web-based tool for undergraduate engagement in medical research; the ProjectPal experience, BMC Medical Education, Vol: 18, ISSN: 1472-6920
BackgroundWe report the development and evaluation of a web-based tool designed to facilitate student extra-curricular engagement in medical research through project matching students with academic supervisors.UK based university students were surveyed to explore their perceptions of undergraduate research, barriers and facilitators to current engagement. Following this, an online web-based intervention (www.ProjectPal.org) was developed to support access of students to research projects and supervisors. A pilot intervention was undertaken across a London-based university in January 2013 to February 2016. In March 2016, anonymised data were extracted from the prospective data log for analysis of website engagement and usage. Supervisors were surveyed to evaluate the website and student outputs.ResultsFifty-one students responded to the electronic survey. Twenty-four (47%) reported frustration at a perceived lack of opportunities to carry out extra-curricular academic projects. Major barriers to engaging in undergraduate research reported were difficulties in identifying suitable supervisors (33/51; 65%) and time pressures (36/51; 71%) associated with this. Students reported being opportunistic in their engagement with undergraduate research. Following implementation of the website, 438 students signed up to ProjectPal and the website was accessed 1357 times. Access increased on a yearly basis. Overall, 70 projects were advertised by 35 supervisors. There were 86 applications made by students for these projects. By February 2016, the 70 projects had generated 5 peer-review publications with a further 7 manuscripts under peer-review, 14 national presentations, and 1 national prize.ConclusionThe use of an online platform to promote undergraduate engagement with extra-curricular research appears to facilitate extra-curricular engagement with research. Further work to understand the impact compared to normal opportunistic practices in enhancing student engagement is now
Rawson T, Charani E, Moore L, et al., 2018, Exploring the use of C-Reactive Protein to Estimate the Pharmacodynamics of Vancomycin, Therapeutic Drug Monitoring, Vol: 40, Pages: 315-321, ISSN: 0163-4356
BackgroundC-reactive protein (CRP) pharmacodynamic (PD) models have the potential to provide adjunctive methods for predicting the individual exposure-response to antimicrobial therapy. We investigated CRP PD linked to a vancomycin PK model using routinely collected data from non-critical care adults in secondary care.MethodsPatients receiving intermittent intravenous vancomycin therapy in secondary care were identified. A two-compartment vancomycin PK model was linked to a previously described PD model describing CRP response. PK and PD parameters were estimated using a Non-Parametric Adaptive Grid technique. Exposure-response relationships were explored with vancomycin area-under-the-curve (AUC) and the index, AUC:EC50, fitted to CRP data using a sigmoidal Emax model. ResultsTwenty-nine individuals were included. Median age was 62 (21-97) years. Fifteen (52%) patients were microbiology confirmed. PK and PD models were adequately fitted (r2 0.83 and 0.82 respectively). There was a wide variation observed in individual Bayesian posterior EC50 estimates (6.95-48.55mg/L), with mean (SD) AUC:EC50 of 31.46 (29.22). AUC:EC50 was fitted to terminal CRP with AUC:EC50 >19 associated with lower CRP value at 96-120 hours of therapy (100mg/L vs. 44mg/L; p<0.01). ConclusionThe use of AUC:EC50 has the potential to provide in-vivo organism and host response data as an adjunct for in-vitro MIC data, which is currently used as the gold standard PD index for vancomycin therapy. This index can be estimated using routinely collected clinical data. Future work must investigate the role of AUC:EC50 in a prospective cohort and explore linkage with direct patient outcomes.
Rawson T, o'hare D, Herrero P, et al., 2018, Delivering precision antimicrobial therapy through closed-loop control systems, Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, Vol: 73, Pages: 835-843, ISSN: 0305-7453
Sub-optimal exposure to antimicrobial therapy is associated with poor patient outcomes and the development of antimicrobial resistance. Mechanisms for optimizing the concentration of a drug within the individual patient are under development. However, several barriers remain in realizing true individualization of therapy. These include problems with plasma drug sampling, availability of appropriate assays, and current mechanisms for dose adjustment. Biosensor technology offers a means of providing real-time monitoring of antimicrobials in a minimally invasive fashion. We report the potential for using microneedle biosensor technology as part of closed-loop control systems for the optimization of antimicrobial therapy in individual patients.
Rawson T, Moore L, Castro Sanchez E, et al., 2018, Development of a patient-centred intervention to improve knowledge and understanding of antibiotic therapy in secondary care, Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control, Vol: 7, ISSN: 2047-2994
Introduction: We developed a personalised antimicrobial information module co-designed with patients. This study aimed to evaluate the potential impact of this patient-centred intervention on short-term knowledge and understanding of antimicrobial therapy in secondary care. Methods:Thirty previous patients who had received antibiotics in hospital within 12 months were recruited to co-design an intervention to promote patient engagement with infection management. Two workshops, containing five focus-groups were held. These were audio-recorded. Data were analysed using a thematic framework developed deductively based on previous work. Line-by-line coding was performed with new themes added to the framework by two researchers. This was used to inform the development of a patient information module, embedded within an electronic decision support tool (CDSS). The intervention was piloted over a four-week period at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust on 30 in-patients. Pre- and post-intervention questionnaires were developed and implemented to assess short term changes in patient knowledge and understanding and provide feedback on the intervention. Data were analysed using SPSS and NVIVO software. Results: Within the workshops, there was consistency in identified themes. The participants agreed upon and co-designed a personalised PDF document that could be integrated into an electronic CDSS to be used by healthcare professionals at the point-of-care. Their aim for the tool was to provide individualised practical information, signpost to reputable information sources, and enhance communication between patients and healthcare professionals.Eighteen out of thirty in-patients consented to participant in the pilot evaluation with 15/18(83%) completing the study. Median (range) age was 66(22-85) years. The majority were male (10/15;66%). Pre-intervention, patients reported desiring further information regarding their infections and antibiotic therapy, including side effects
Mahbubani K, Georgiades F, Goh E, et al., 2018, Clinician-directed improvement in the accuracy of hospital clinical coding, Future Hospital Journal, Vol: 5, Pages: 47-51, ISSN: 2055-3331
‘Payment by results’ (PbR) remuneration for healthcare services relies on the accurate conversion of diagnoses into Healthcare Resource Group (HRG) codes that are then reimbursed. Inconsistencies in documentation can result in inaccuracies in this process, with consequent implications for measuring activity, disease incidence and organisational performance.The aim of this study was to determine if clinician involvement increases accuracy in the coding of medical cases. Selected records of medical patients admitted to a London NHS trust between November and December 2016 were reviewed by a coding auditor and a clinician. Any changes to the codes and HRG tariff were noted. In total, 123 cases were considered. Changes in code were made on 68 instances, resulting in an overall increase in remuneration of £39,215; an average of £318 per patient. The primary HRG code was changed in 31 cases which accounted for £28,040 of the increase in tariff. In conclusion, clinician involvement can help with documentation ambiguities, thus improving the accuracy of the coding process in a medical setting. Although such collaborative working offers advantages for both the clinician and the coding team, further work is required to investigate the feasibility of this recommendation on a larger scale.
Hernandez Perez B, Herrero Viñas P, Miles Rawson T, et al., 2017, Supervised Learning for Infection Risk Inference Using Pathology Data, BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making, Vol: 17, ISSN: 1472-6947
Background: Antimicrobial Resistance is threatening our ability to treat common infectious diseases and overuse of antimicrobials to treat human infections in hospitals is accelerating this process. Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSSs) have been proven to enhance quality of care by promoting change in prescription practices through antimicrobial selection advice. However, bypassing an initial assessment to determine the existence of an underlying disease that justifies the need of antimicrobial therapy might lead to indiscriminate and often unnecessary prescriptions.Methods: From pathology laboratory tests, six biochemical markers were selected and combined with microbiology outcomes from susceptibility tests to create a unique dataset with over one and a half million daily profiles to perform infection risk inference. Outliers were discarded using the inter-quartile range rule and several sampling techniques were studied to tackle the class imbalance problem. The first phase selects the most effective and robust model during training using four-fold stratified cross-validation. The second phase evaluates the final model after isotonic calibration in scenarios with missing inputs and imbalanced class distributions. Results: More than 50\% of infected profiles have daily requested laboratory tests for the six biochemical markers with very promising infection inference results: area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (0.80-0.83), sensitivity (0.64-0.75) and specificity (0.92-0.97). Standardization consistently outperforms normalization and sensitivity is enhanced by using the SMOTE sampling technique. Furthermore, models operated without noticeable loss in performance if at least four biomarkers were available.Conclusion: The selected biomarkers comprise enough information to perform infection risk inference with a high degree of confidence even in the presence of incomplete and imbalanced data. Since they are commonly available in hospitals, Clini
Sartelli M, Kluger Y, Ansaloni L, et al., 2017, A Global Declaration on Appropriate Use of Antimicrobial Agents across the Surgical Pathway, SURGICAL INFECTIONS, Vol: 18, Pages: 846-853, ISSN: 1096-2964
Rawson TM, Sharma S, Georgiou P, et al., 2017, Towards a minimally invasive device for beta-lactam monitoring in humans, Electrochemistry Communications, Vol: 82, Pages: 1-5, ISSN: 1388-2481
Antimicrobial resistance is a leading patient safety issue. There is a need to develop novel mechanisms for monitoring and subsequently improving the precision of how we use antibiotics. A surface modified microneedle array was developed for monitoring beta-lactam antibiotic levels in human interstitial fluid. The sensor was fabricated by anodically electrodepositing iridium oxide (AEIROF) onto a platinum surface on the microneedle followed by fixation of beta-lactamase enzyme within a hydrogel. Calibration of the sensor was performed to penicillin-G in buffer solution (PBS) and artificial interstitial fluid (ISF). Further calibration of a platinum disc electrode was undertaken using amoxicillin and ceftriaxone. Open-circuit potentials were performed and data analysed using the Hill equation and log(concentration [M]) plots. The microneedle sensor demonstrated high reproducibility between penicillin-G runs in PBS with mean Km (± 1SD) = 0.0044 ± 0.0013 M and mean slope function of log(concentration plots) 29 ± 1.80 mV/decade (r2 = 0.933). Response was reproducible after 28 days storage at 4 °C. In artificial ISF, the sensors response was Km (± 1SD) = 0.0077 ± 0.0187 M and a slope function of 34 ± 1.85 mv/decade (r2 = 0.995). Our results suggest that microneedle array based beta-lactam sensing may be a future application of this AEIROF based enzymatic sensor.
Boyd S, moore LSP, Rawson TM, et al., 2017, Combination therapy for carbapenemase-producing Entero-bacteriaceae: INCREMENT-al effect on resistance remains unclear, The Lancet Infectious Diseases, Vol: 17, Pages: 899-900, ISSN: 1473-3099
Basetti S, Hodgson J, Rawson TM, et al., 2017, Scarlet fever: A guide for general practitioners, London Journal of Primary Care, Vol: 9, Pages: 77-79, ISSN: 1757-1472
There has been an increase in the incidence of scarlet fever with most cases presenting in General Practice and Emergency Departments. Cases present with a distinctive macro-papular rash, usually in children. This article aims to increase awareness of scarlet fever by highlighting key symptoms and stating potential complications if untreated. In patients who have the typical symptoms, a prescription of a suitable antibiotic such as phenoxymethylpenicillin (Penicillin V) should be made immediately to reduce the risk of complications and the spread of infection.
Gill DPS, Del Greco M F, Rawson TM, et al., 2017, Age at Menarche and Time Spent in Education: A Mendelian Randomization Study, Behavior Genetics, Vol: 47, Pages: 480-485, ISSN: 0001-8244
Menarche signifies the primary event in female puberty and is associated with changes in self-identity. It is not clear whether earlier puberty causes girls to spend less time in education. Observational studies on this topic are likely to be affected by confounding environmental factors. The Mendelian randomization (MR) approach addresses these issues by using genetic variants (such as single nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs) as proxies for the risk factor of interest. We use this technique to explore whether there is a causal effect of age at menarche on time spent in education. Instruments and SNP-age at menarche estimates are identified from a Genome Wide Association Study (GWAS) meta-analysis of 182,416 women of European descent. The effects of instruments on time spent in education are estimated using a GWAS meta-analysis of 118,443 women performed by the Social Science Genetic Association Consortium (SSGAC). In our main analysis, we demonstrate a small but statistically significant causal effect of age at menarche on time spent in education: a 1 year increase in age at menarche is associated with 0.14 years (53 days) increase in time spent in education (95% CI 0.10–0.21 years, p = 3.5 × 10−8). The causal effect is confirmed in sensitivity analyses. In identifying this positive causal effect of age at menarche on time spent in education, we offer further insight into the social effects of puberty in girls.
Sartelli M, Weber DG, Ruppe E, et al., 2017, Erratum to: Antimicrobials: a global alliance for optimizing their rational use in intra-abdominal infections (AGORA), World Journal of Emergency Surgery, Vol: 12, ISSN: 1749-7922
Sartelli M, Labricciosa FM, Barbadoro P, et al., 2017, The Global Alliance for Infections in Surgery: defining a model for antimicrobial stewardship-results from an international cross-sectional survey, WORLD JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY SURGERY, Vol: 12, ISSN: 1749-7922
BackgroundAntimicrobial Stewardship Programs (ASPs) have been promoted to optimize antimicrobial usage and patient outcomes, and to reduce the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant organisms. However, the best strategies for an ASP are not definitively established and are likely to vary based on local culture, policy, and routine clinical practice, and probably limited resources in middle-income countries. The aim of this study is to evaluate structures and resources of antimicrobial stewardship teams (ASTs) in surgical departments from different regions of the world.MethodsA cross-sectional web-based survey was conducted in 2016 on 173 physicians who participated in the AGORA (Antimicrobials: A Global Alliance for Optimizing their Rational Use in Intra-Abdominal Infections) project and on 658 international experts in the fields of ASPs, infection control, and infections in surgery.ResultsThe response rate was 19.4%. One hundred fifty-six (98.7%) participants stated their hospital had a multidisciplinary AST. The median number of physicians working inside the team was five [interquartile range 4–6]. An infectious disease specialist, a microbiologist and an infection control specialist were, respectively, present in 80.1, 76.3, and 67.9% of the ASTs. A surgeon was a component in 59.0% of cases and was significantly more likely to be present in university hospitals (89.5%, p < 0.05) compared to community teaching (83.3%) and community hospitals (66.7%). Protocols for pre-operative prophylaxis and for antimicrobial treatment of surgical infections were respectively implemented in 96.2 and 82.3% of the hospitals. The majority of the surgical departments implemented both persuasive and restrictive interventions (72.8%). The most common types of interventions in surgical departments were dissemination of educational materials (62.5%), expert approval (61.0%), audit and feedback (55.1%), educational outreach (53.7%), and compulsory order forms (51.5%).ConclusionThe
Rawson T, Castro Sanchez E, Charani E, et al., 2017, Involving citizens in priority setting for public health research: implementation in infection research, Health Expectations, Vol: 21, Pages: 222-229, ISSN: 1369-7625
BackgroundPublic sources fund the majority of UK infection research, but citizens currently have no formal role in resource allocation. To explore the feasibility and willingness of citizens to engage in strategic decision making, we developed and tested a practical tool to capture public priorities for research.MethodA scenario including six infection themes for funding was developed to assess citizen priorities for research funding. This was tested over two days at a university public festival. Votes were cast anonymously along with rationale for selection. The scenario was then implemented during a three-hour focus group exploring views on engagement in strategic decisions and in-depth evaluation of the tool.Results188/491(38%) prioritized funding research into drug-resistant infections followed by emerging infections(18%). Results were similar between both days. Focus groups contained a total of 20 citizens with an equal gender split, range of ethnicities and ages ranging from 18 to >70 years. The tool was perceived as clear with participants able to make informed comparisons. Rationale for funding choices provided by voters and focus group participants are grouped into three major themes: (i) Information processing; (ii) Knowledge of the problem; (iii) Responsibility; and a unique theme within the focus groups (iv) The potential role of citizens in decision making. Divergent perceptions of relevance and confidence of “non-experts” as decision makers were expressed.ConclusionVoting scenarios can be used to collect, en-masse, citizens' choices and rationale for research priorities. Ensuring adequate levels of citizen information and confidence is important to allow deployment in other formats.
Birgand GJC, Troughton R, Moore L, et al., 2017, Blogging in infectious diseases and clinical microbiology: Assessment of the 'blogosphere' content, Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, Vol: 38, Pages: 832-839, ISSN: 1559-6834
Objective.To analyzeinfluential infectious diseases, antimicrobial stewardship, infection control, or medical microbiology blogs and bloggers.Setting. World Wide WebDesign. We conducted a systematic search for blogs in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines in September 2015.Methods.A snowball sampling approach was applied to identify blogs using various search engines. Blogs were eligible if they: 1) focused on infectious diseases (ID), antimicrobial stewardship (AMS), infection control (IC), or medical microbiology (MM); 2) were intended for health professionals, 3) were written in English and updated regularly. We mapped blogs/bloggers characteristics and used an innovative tool to assess their architecture and content. Motivations and perceptions of bloggers and readers were assessed. Results.A total of 88 blogs were identified. 28 (32%) focused on ID, 46 (52%) on MM and 14 (16%) in IC or AMS. Bloggers were mainly male, MD and/or PhD, 32 (36%) posted at least weekly, and 51 (58%) for a research purpose. The aims were considered clear for 23 (26%) blogs, the field covered was broad for 25 (28%), presentation was good for 22 (25%), 51 were easy to read (58%) and 46 included expert interpretation (52%). Among the top 10 blogs (2 equally-ranked), 3 focused on ID, 6 on MM and 2 on IC. Bloggers questioned were motivated by sharing independent expertise/opinion. Readers appreciated the concise messages given on scientific and practical updates.Conclusions.This study describes high level blogs in ID/IC/MM suggesting how bloggers should build/orientate blogs for readers, and highlighting current gaps in topics such as AMS.
Rawson T, moore L, Hernandez B, et al., 2017, A systematic review of clinical decision support systems for antimicrobial management: Are we failing to investigate these interventions appropriately?, Clinical Microbiology and Infection, Vol: 23, Pages: 524-532, ISSN: 1469-0691
ObjectivesClinical decision support systems (CDSS) for antimicrobial management can support clinicians to optimise antimicrobial therapy. We reviewed all original literature (qualitative and quantitative) to understand the current scope of CDSS for antimicrobial management and analyse existing methods used to evaluate and report such systems. MethodPRISMA guidelines were followed. Medline, EMBASE, HMIC Health and Management, and Global Health databases were searched from 1st January 1980 to 31st October 2015. All primary research studies describing CDSS for antimicrobial management in adults in primary or secondary care were included. For qualitative studies, thematic synthesis was performed. Quality was assessed using Integrated quality Criteria for the Review Of Multiple Study designs (ICROMS) criteria. CDSS reporting was assessed against a reporting framework for behaviour change intervention implementation.ResultsFifty-eight original articles were included describing 38 independent CDSS. The majority of systems target antimicrobial prescribing (29/38;76%), are platforms integrated with electronic medical records (28/38;74%), and have rules based infrastructure providing decision support (29/38;76%). On evaluation against the intervention reporting framework, CDSS studies fail to report consideration of the non-expert, end-user workflow. They have narrow focus, such as antimicrobial selection, and use proxy outcome measures. Engagement with CDSS by clinicians was poor.ConclusionGreater consideration of the factors that drive non-expert decision making must be considered when designing CDSS interventions. Future work must aim to expand CDSS beyond simply selecting appropriate antimicrobials with clear and systematic reporting frameworks for CDSS interventions developed to address current gaps identified in the reporting of evidence.
Hernandez B, Herrero P, Rawson TM, et al., 2017, Data-drivenWeb-based Intelligent Decision Support System for Infection Management at Point-Of-Care: Case-Based Reasoning Benefits and Limitations, 10th International Joint Conference on Biomedical Engineering Systems and Technologies, Publisher: SCITEPRESS, Pages: 119-127
Alividza V, Mariano V, Steel S, et al., 2017, Investigating the impact of poverty on colonization/infection with drug-resistant organisms in humans: a scoping review, ECCMID 2017
Rawson T, Moore L, Tivey A, et al., 2017, Behaviour change interventions to influence antimicrobial prescribing: a cross-sectional analysis of reports from UK state-of-the-art scientific conferences, Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control, Vol: 6, ISSN: 2047-2994
BackgroundTo improve the quality of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) interventions the application of behavioural sciences supported by multidisciplinary collaboration has been recommended. We analysed major UK scientific research conferences to investigate AMS behaviour change intervention reporting. MethodsLeading UK 2015 scientific conference abstracts for 30 clinical specialties were identified and interrogated. All AMS and/or antimicrobial resistance(AMR) abstracts were identified using validated search criteria. Abstracts were independently reviewed by four researchers with reported behavioural interventions classified using a behaviour change taxonomy. ResultsConferences ran for 110 days with >57,000 delegates. 311/12,313(2.5%) AMS-AMR abstracts (oral and poster) were identified. 118/311(40%) were presented at the UK’s infectious diseases/microbiology conference. 56/311(18%) AMS-AMR abstracts described behaviour change interventions. These were identified across 12/30(40%) conferences. The commonest abstract reporting behaviour change interventions were quality improvement projects [44/56 (79%)]. In total 71 unique behaviour change functions were identified. Policy categories; “guidelines” (16/71) and “service provision” (11/71) were the most frequently reported. Intervention functions; “education” (6/71), “persuasion” (7/71), and “enablement” (9/71) were also common. Only infection and primary care conferences reported studies that contained multiple behaviour change interventions. The remaining 10 specialties tended to report a narrow range of interventions focusing on “guidelines” and “enablement”. ConclusionDespite the benefits of behaviour change interventions on antimicrobial prescribing, very few AMS-AMR studies reported implementing them in 2015. AMS interventions must focus on promoting behaviour change towards antimicrobial prescribing. Greater focus must b
Rawson T, Charani E, Moore L, et al., 2016, Vancomycin therapy in secondary care; investigating factors that impact therapeutic target attainment, Journal of Infection, Vol: 74, Pages: 320-324, ISSN: 1532-2742
Rawson T, Charani E, Moore L, et al., 2016, Mapping the decision pathways of acute infection management in secondary care among UK medical physicians: a qualitative study, BMC Medicine, Vol: 14, ISSN: 1741-7015
BackgroundThe inappropriate use of antimicrobials drives antimicrobial resistance. We conducted a study to map physician decision making processes for acute infection management in secondary care to identify potential targets for quality improvement interventions.MethodsNewly qualified to Consultant level physicians participated in semi-structured interviews. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim for analysis using NVIVO11.0 software. Grounded theory methodology was applied. Analytical categories were created using constant comparison approach to the data and participants were recruited to the study until thematic saturation was reached. ResultsTwenty physicians were interviewed. The decision pathway for the management of acute infections follows a Bayesian-like step-wise approach, with information processed and systematically added to prior assumptions to guide management. The main emerging themes identified as determinants of the decision making of individual physicians were; (i) perceptions of providing “optimal” care for the patient with infection by providing rapid and often intravenous therapy; (ii) perceptions that stopping/de-escalating therapy was a senior doctor decision with junior trainees not expected to contribute; (iii) expectation of interactions with local guidelines and microbiology service advice. Feedback on review of junior doctor prescribing decisions was often lacking, causing frustration and confusion on appropriate practice within this cohort. ConclusionInterventions to improve infection management must incorporate mechanisms to promote distribution of responsibility for decisions made. The disparity between expectations of prescribers to start but not review/stop therapy requires addressing urgently with mechanisms to improve communication and feedback to junior prescribers to facilitate their continued development as prudent antimicrobial prescribers.
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