What is the primary goal of an Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP)?

The primary goal of an Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP) is to optimize the use of antimicrobials, improve patient outcomes, and reduce microbial resistance. This involves ensuring that patients receive the right antibiotic, at the right dose, for the right duration, which helps to improve effectiveness while simultaneously minimizing potential adverse effects and the development of resistance among pathogens.

By optimizing antimicrobial use, ASPs aim to achieve better health outcomes for patients, decreasing the rate of treatment failures and reducing complications associated with inappropriate antibiotic use. Additionally, reducing microbial resistance is critical because the overuse or misuse of antimicrobials contributes significantly to the emergence of resistant strains of bacteria, which poses a major public health threat.

In contrast, emphasizing the general increase of antimicrobials would contradict the very purpose of stewardship, which is to promote judicious use. Focusing solely on educational initiatives is a component of an ASP, but the program's goals are broader and encompass systematic monitoring and intervention strategies to guide proper antimicrobial prescribing. Lastly, while reducing unnecessary antibiotic use is important, completely eliminating antibiotics from healthcare is not feasible, as they are essential for treating many infections and should be used wisely rather than entirely avoided.