PGH Trains Teams To Fight Drug-Resistant Infections

By Staff Writer

Nakuru County has moved to protect patients from hard-to-treat infections by training hospital teams to prescribe antibiotics based on evidence, local resistance patterns and strict clinical need.

Nakuru County Referral and Teaching Hospital hosted a multidisciplinary team from Kabarak University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, the University of Texas Medical Branch and partner institutions for a Continuous Medical Education programme on antimicrobial stewardship.

The training is aimed at strengthening antibiotic prescribing, improving microbiology diagnostics and enhancing surveillance of antimicrobial resistance, which remains a growing threat to patient safety and treatment outcomes.

Hospital Director Santosh Devaraj said the hospital was committed to adopting evidence-based practices and working with strategic partners to improve the quality and safety of care offered to patients.

“Every antibiotic decision must be guided by evidence, patient need and local resistance patterns because responsible prescribing is central to protecting patients and preserving these medicines for the future,” said Mr Devaraj.

The programme brought together clinicians, pharmacists, nurses, laboratory professionals and infection prevention teams, reflecting the multidisciplinary approach required to reduce misuse and overuse of antibiotics in health facilities.

Antimicrobial resistance occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites no longer respond effectively to medicines, making infections harder to treat and increasing the risk of severe illness, prolonged hospital stays and death.

At the centre of the engagement is the development and use of a hospital antibiogram, a clinical decision-support tool that helps health workers prescribe antibiotics based on resistance patterns identified within the facility.

The tool enables clinicians to make more accurate treatment decisions by showing which antibiotics are likely to work against common infections in a specific hospital or region.

According to the hospital, the use of an antibiogram is expected to improve treatment outcomes, reduce unnecessary antibiotic use and strengthen patient safety by supporting targeted therapy.

Mr Devaraj said partnerships with universities and health institutions were helping the hospital build capacity in areas that are critical to modern clinical practice and public health preparedness.

“This collaboration gives our health workers practical tools to improve prescribing, strengthen laboratory diagnosis and support surveillance systems that can detect and respond to antimicrobial resistance more effectively,” he said.

The training also focused on improving coordination between clinical teams and laboratory departments, ensuring that treatment decisions are informed by diagnostic results where possible instead of relying only on broad antibiotic coverage.

Health experts have warned that inappropriate antibiotic use, including self-medication, incomplete treatment and unnecessary prescriptions, contributes to the rise of drug-resistant infections.

For hospitals, antimicrobial stewardship programmes help ensure patients receive the right antibiotic, at the right dose, through the right route and for the right duration.

The Nakuru initiative comes as health facilities increasingly prioritise infection prevention, laboratory strengthening and data-driven prescribing to protect the effectiveness of antibiotics.

Through the programme, Nakuru County Referral and Teaching Hospital is positioning itself as a key player in efforts to build a more resilient health system capable of responding to emerging infectious disease threats.

The hospital boss said continued investment in knowledge, partnerships and innovation will be critical in safeguarding life-saving medicines and improving patient outcomes for the communities served by the referral hospital.