Longitudinal trends and cross-sectional analysis of English national hospital antibacterial use over 5 years (2008-13): working towards hospital prescribing quality measures

Abstract

Longitudinal analysis of antibacterial use demonstrated remarkable changes in NHS hospitals, probably reflecting governmental and professional guidance to mitigate the risk of Clostridium difficile infection. The wide variation in usage between individual hospitals suggests potential for quality improvement and benchmarking. Quality measures of optimal hospital antimicrobial prescribing need urgent development and validation to support antimicrobial stewardship initiatives.