Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

The antibiotics arms race must end

Charles W. Olson, Jr., MD
Conditions
January 18, 2019
Share
Tweet
Share

“Cha-ching!” goes urgent care. For your rhinovirus, adenovirus, or seasonal allergies you get a strep screen, flu swab, CBC, and chest X-ray. You get a steroid shot, Rocephin, and Z-Pak. A week later, you present for medical care again, because your virus is no better, and you want a stronger antibiotic.

In the meantime, your body’s normal healthy bacterial flora has been altered and will take six weeks to six months to recover. Think of the savings to our patients if we could promote education instead of unnecessary expense. Their symptoms will last several weeks, and the production or color of mucus has no bearing on bacterial etiology or healing time. Unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions will not shorten the course of the illness. Ask anyone who has dealt with methicillin-resistant Staph aureus (MRSA) or C. diff. diarrhea about the personal cost of our overusing antibiotics and developing resistant bugs.

This escalation of demand for stronger antibiotics reminds me of the evolution of the opioid issue and pain management. Administrators insisted that patients must be pain-free and satisfied. Physicians were manipulated into prescribing escalating doses and strengths of medication to maintain employment and happy patient reviews. If hydrocodone isn’t strong enough, you must increase to oxycodone, fentanyl patch … the patient satisfaction emperor had no clothes, and physicians failed when we didn’t put our patients’ health first.

We see this same escalation of concern in dealing with seasonal influenza. Viruses developed resistance to amantadine, then Flumadine, and we are now seeing resistance to oseltamivir (Tamiflu). We shouted alarm before the swine flu (H1N1) and discussion of mutating bird flu (H5N1), asking why are we prescribing Tamiflu to healthy adults? You must make the patient happy. Our microwave, everything-at-the-touch-of-a-cell-phone society demands instant health and healing.

The patient expects some treatment or prescription for their time and co-pay. Patients are not appeased when you explain that ibuprofen, naproxen, and guaifenesin were prescriptions in the past, and now available over-the-counter to sometimes ease our symptoms. A forward-thinking society would emphasize ways to educate our patients’ understanding of viruses and their contagion. When they say “it is going around our house,” or “they gave it to me,” or “I get this sinus infection every year at this time” the best thing we can do for our patient’s health is to encourage education, healthy nutrition, hydration, and rest.

Over time, our patients will be better educated, avoiding that unnecessary trip to the physician’s office and further exposure to illnesses. Their immune system will be stronger, and their microbiome will thank you.

Charles W. Olson, Jr. is an emergency physician.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Take ownership of our broken health care system now

January 18, 2019 Kevin 2
…
Next

How Google is quietly influencing medicine

January 18, 2019 Kevin 2
…

Tagged as: Infectious Disease

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Take ownership of our broken health care system now
Next Post >
How Google is quietly influencing medicine

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

  • Inappropriate antibiotics are the new drugs of abuse

    Rosemary Eseh-Logue, MD
  • Why developing new antibiotics is a losing battle

    Christopher Johnson, MD
  • Why you should think twice about prescribing antibiotics

    Rich Rodriguez, MD
  • Should only infectious disease specialists be allowed to prescribe antibiotics?

    Craig Bowron, MD
  • Doctors as the gatekeepers of marijuana is a race to the bottom

    John Schumann, MD
  • Race to the bottom: The myth of low-quality care in America

    Eric W. Toth, DO

More in Conditions

  • Why PSA levels alone shouldn’t define your prostate cancer risk

    Martina Ambardjieva, MD, PhD
  • Reframing chronic pain and dignity: What a pain clinic teaches us about MAiD and chronic suffering

    Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD
  • America’s ER crisis: Why the system is collapsing from within

    Kristen Cline, BSN, RN
  • Why timing, not surgery, determines patient survival

    Michael Karch, MD
  • Why psychotherapy works and why psychotherapy fails

    Peggy A. Rothbaum, PhD
  • How oral health silently affects your heart, brain, and body

    Charles Reinertsen, DMD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Why timing, not surgery, determines patient survival

      Michael Karch, MD | Conditions
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • Why point-of-care ultrasound belongs in every emergency department triage [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why PSA levels alone shouldn’t define your prostate cancer risk

      Martina Ambardjieva, MD, PhD | Conditions
    • How to handle chronically late patients in your medical practice

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • Reframing chronic pain and dignity: What a pain clinic teaches us about MAiD and chronic suffering

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Conditions
    • How early meetings and after-hours events penalize physician-mothers

      Samira Jeimy, MD, PhD and Menaka Pai, MD | Physician
    • Why medicine must evolve to support modern physicians

      Ryan Nadelson, MD | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 4 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Why timing, not surgery, determines patient survival

      Michael Karch, MD | Conditions
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Forced voicemail and diagnosis codes are endangering patient access to medications

      Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA | Meds
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • The One Big Beautiful Bill and the fragile heart of rural health care

      Holland Haynie, MD | Policy
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • Why point-of-care ultrasound belongs in every emergency department triage [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why PSA levels alone shouldn’t define your prostate cancer risk

      Martina Ambardjieva, MD, PhD | Conditions
    • How to handle chronically late patients in your medical practice

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • Reframing chronic pain and dignity: What a pain clinic teaches us about MAiD and chronic suffering

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Conditions
    • How early meetings and after-hours events penalize physician-mothers

      Samira Jeimy, MD, PhD and Menaka Pai, MD | Physician
    • Why medicine must evolve to support modern physicians

      Ryan Nadelson, MD | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

The antibiotics arms race must end
4 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...