Antimicrobial Stewardship Program: actions and education in Brazilian pediatric intensive care units.
Eliane Carlosso Krummenauer, Mariana Portela de Assis, Mara Rubia Santos Gonçalves and 5 others
PMID 40834132WHAT IT FOUND
In 219 Brazilian pediatric ICUs, educational activities on antimicrobial use were basic, while prescribing actions were more consolidated.
Public hospitals reported more patient education, but private, larger hospitals had more prescribing audits and protocols. Overall scores did not differ significantly by hospital type or size.
Key findings
01Component 3 (education) reached a basic level, while Component 4 (prescribing actions) reached an advanced level, with an average of 155 (70.8%) consolidated actions.
02Public hospitals had a higher absolute frequency of affirmative responses for educating patients and carers about rational antimicrobial use.
03There were no significant differences in overall education or prescribing scores between public and private hospitals, or by hospital size.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study relied on voluntary participation, which introduces selection bias and may not reflect the general panorama of Brazilian hospitals. The survey was completed by representatives of the ASP teams, which may lead to self-reporting bias regarding the quality of implemented actions. The study design is cross-sectional, so it cannot determine if the observed differences in actions lead to improved clinical outcomes or reduced resistance.
Declared interests
This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) - Finance Code 001, Brazil. No other conflicts of interest were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that the lack of significant differences in overall scores means public and private hospitals are performing identically. The data shows distinct patterns: public hospitals focused more on patient education, while private hospitals focused more on prescribing audits and protocols. A single total score masks these different strengths and weaknesses.