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Infection prevention and controlA1 Explain how antimicrobial resistance occurs.
According to World Health Organization (2024), “Antimicrobials – including antibiotics, antivirals,
antifungals, and antiparasitic – are medicines used to prevent and treat infectious diseases in
humans, animals and plants”. The antimicrobial resistance happens when microorganisms such as
bacteria, fungi, virus, and parasites do not react to “antimicrobial medicines.” Therefore, the
medications become “ineffective,” and it becomes hard/difficult for the infections to get cured which
increases the risk of it being spread and result in death. It can also happen if individual misuse it or
take overdose. It is a “natural process” that happens as time passes by through “genetic changes in
pathogens.” Drug resistance can threaten productivity of the animals and “threaten food security.”
And it’s also expensive because it takes intensive care and treatment to cure it.
One of many medicine that is resistant to almost every type of antibiotic is called MRSA (methicillin
resistant staphylococcus aureus). It is mostly found on the skin, inside the nostrils and throat and if it
gets inside the skin barrier, it can cause life threatening infections. Screening is required and the
individual have to bath in antibacterial wash. One of the treatment that are found to be effective
against this resistance is polymyxin b. viruses develop further and resistant overtime and that’s why
vaccines are required to prevent them from acting. Influenza is an example of a virus that mutates.
Patients can have side effects such as allergic reactions if they are not taking their medication on
time or stopping it before their due date because they feel better Wyatt L et al (2017, page 114).
According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (N.D), “Antimicrobial resistance happens
when germs like bacteria and fungi develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them.
That means the germs are not killed and continue to grow. Resistant infections can be difficult, and
sometimes impossible, to treat.” This can affect people at different life stages. Antimicrobial
resistant infections which require 2 or 3 lines of treatments can cause serious harm and side effects
which can result in an organ failure. “Many medical advances” rely on antibiotics to fight these
infections but in some cases, there are no treatment options to cure these.
NHS has been helping to “include MR” by ensuring access to the old and new treatments, taking
prevention actions which includes things like vaccines and using appropriate tools. They are
supporting “system wife improvement,” “surveillance,” making sure the practice is using infection
prevention and control procedures as well as having “antimicrobial stewardship” so there are enough
resources to help to reduce or fight these infections which are available to all practitioners. They
have also “established” a national AMR Programme which supports the NHS responsibilities which
also includes workstreams such as data, IPC and antimicrobial prescribing and medicines
optimisation etc NHS England (N.D).
We can prevent antimicrobial resistance from occurring by preventing infections from occurring,
improving antibiotic and antifungal use to slow the development of resistance, and stopping the
spread of resistance when it develops. It can also be prevented by using unnecessary prescribed
medication, overprescribing antibiotics, and using correct dose of prescribed antibiotics. Having good
hygiene and following the infection control procedures in care setting can play a role in helping to
reduce or prevent this.
Antimicrobial resistance is accelerated when the presence of antibiotics and antifungals etc
pressure the bacteria and fungi to adapt. They both kill some germs that cause infections, but they
, also kill some helpful bacteria that play a huge role in protecting our body from any type of
infection. Antimicrobial resistant germs survive and multiply over time. If the antibiotics
medication is not taken, is given unnecessarily or the service user doesn’t take it for the full
course, the individual can develop a resistant to the antibiotic or the viral infection which may
become resistant due to the treatment not taken as it should be. There are two main ways that the
bacteria cells can occur antibiotic resistance. One way is through mutations that occur in the DNA
of the cell during replication and the other is that the bacteria develop the resistant through
horizontal gene transfer.
If the individual continues to take antibiotics even when they have antimicrobial resistance, it can
cause serious health problems like organ failure etc and the pathogenic bacteria can replace the
harmless bacteria. If the individual stops the medication early even if the symptoms have stopped,
they can experience something called relapse which means starting the medication all over,
symptoms returning and the increased risk in antimicrobial resistance BPAC (2024).
A2 Evaluate the use of drugs to control and treat infectious disease.
There are many medications which are used to treat infectious diseases e.g. ointment to treat athlete
foot. However, in order to treat complex infections, antibiotics must be prescribed. These medicines
can save people’s lives and allow them to live their full life happily and healthy. They also spend less
time in hospital and get treated in their own home for short diseases such as fever. Every medicine
has different strengths therefore it’s important to take the right dose and strength. Individuals can
have side effects which can be allergic reactions to certain medicines and are not 100% effective. It is
better to prevent infections from occurring in first place then treating them Wyatt L et al (2017,
page 113).
According to National library of medicine (N.D), “Vaccinated people produce antibodies that
neutralize a disease-causing virus or bacterium. They are much less likely to become infected and
transmit those germs to others.” People who have not got vaccine are also protected because
people around them who got vaccines have not got sick or transmitting the infection. It helps to
identify the micro-organisms and then destroy it.
Infectious diseases are illnesses that are caused by harmful pathogens which gets through the skin
barrier. Some pathogens that cause infectious diseases are viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasite. an
individual can get infectious diseases by contaminated food, bug bites or even from other people etc.
people who have weak immune system or if they travel to places that have transmissible diseases.
Individuals who have infectious diseases can get sepsis, meningitis, AIDS or even lung cancer etc.
infectious diseases can be transmitted through open wounds, nose, and mouth as pathogens enter
the body through this. It can also be spread if a person coughs and the droplets gets on other person,
intimacy, sharing things, touching surfaces, being close to a person with infectious disease and bug
bites. It can also be spread through contaminated food/water/soil, being pregnant and also from
blood transfusions etc. they can be diagnosed using lab tests and treatment varies on the cause of
infection. However, it can be prevented it’s not 100% effective. Vaccines help the immune system to
recognise and fight off the infectious disease and pathogens that are harmful to health Cleveland
clinic (2024).
Micro organisms Medications Examples
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