Today, Riverside Health System announced its flagship hospital, Riverside Regional Medical Center (RRMC), was recognized as an Antimicrobial Stewardship Center of Excellence by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA). With this certification, RRMC joins a cohort of 150 national and international organizations dedicated to the improvement of antimicrobial use and reduction of antimicrobial resistance. Antimicrobial resistant infections are harder to treat and require more medical intervention. Annually, the infections are the cause of more than 700,000 deaths in the United States.
“Antimicrobial Stewardship is a part of Riverside’s culture of zero-harm,” says Kathy Koehl, Pharm.D., Riverside Pharmacy System Director. “Our commitment to reducing antimicrobial resistant infections enables us to provide high-quality, safe and effective health care to those in need.”
Antimicrobial resistant infections can be caused by DNA mutation or over prescription of antibiotics to treat common conditions such as sinus infections, urinary tract infections, strep throat and more. The antibiotics kill off bacteria that caused the illness but leave behind the drug-resistant cells. The goal of the IDSA stewardship program is to ensure the delivery of the most appropriate antibiotic and correct dosage is used for each patient.
“Riverside’s commitment to reduction of antimicrobial resistance includes the limited prescriptions of antibiotics when their use is not clinically indicated,” says Cindy Williams, B.S. Pharm, FASHP, Chief Pharmacy Officer at Riverside. “This appropriate stewardship improves patient outcomes by increasing antibiotic effectiveness and reducing unnecessary side effects.”
RRMC is one of two hospitals in the state to receive this certification and the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program includes physicians, pharmacists, nurses, infection prevention specialists, laboratory team members and clinical educators. The program provides clinical decision support from an interdisciplinary rounding team, dedicated antimicrobial stewardship pharmacist presence within the hospital, ongoing staff and patient education efforts and continuous monitoring of antimicrobial use to optimize patient care.
To learn more about Riverside Regional Medical Center, please visit riversideonline.com/rrmc.