Reporting England’s progress towards the ambitions in the UK action plan for antimicrobial resistance: the English surveillance programme for antimicrobial utilisation and resistance (ESPAUR)

Abstract

The plans for a new antimicrobial utilization and resistance national surveillance programme, alongside the development of quality measures and methods to monitor unintended outcomes of antimicrobial stewardship and both public and professional behaviour interventions were published in 2013. Since then, England has published an annual surveillance report including outlining progress against the ambitions of the UK national action plans on antimicrobial resistance (2013 to 2018 and 2019 to 2024). A decade later we provide a brief update on progress so far, with a focus on key highlights from the latest report published in November 2022. We also provide our recommendations for areas of focus as we move into the next decade. From an initial focus on antibiotic consumption and resistance, the report now includes surveillance data for antifungals, antivirals (including novel agents, such as those targeting SARS-CoV-2) and antimalarials. Evaluation of key stewardship interventions including professional and public engagement initiatives are also reported, as well as progress against NHS England's (NHSE's) improvement measures.