With fears mounting that people are becoming more resistant to antibiotics, Bolton West MP Chris Green has joined calls for more to be done to combat this issue.
At an event in the House of Commons, the MP, who is a member of the Science and Technology Select Committee, met with leading experts to learn more about the challenge and new initiatives in place to help minimise the threat.
The event also allowed Chris to sample first-hand an example of an innovative C-Reactive Protein Point of Care diagnostic test, which has the potential to help reduce inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics in primary care – a key driver of antimicrobial resistance.
Chris commented:
“Antimicrobial resistance is an increasingly significant threat to the health of individuals and society as a whole, with a number of bacteria already resistant to last-resort antibiotics and 25,000 people in Europe dying each year due to drug-resistant infections.
“With that in mind, I was therefore delighted to be able to attend this Parliamentary session and learn more about the issue, and the importance of ensuring that effective stewardship programmes are being put in place both nationally and locally.
“Antimicrobial resistance has the potential to kill up to 10 million people a year by 2050, with a cumulative cost to the economy of £70 trillion and so it’s important that we do all we can to minimise this threat.”