Addressing Antimicrobial Resistance in Women

Uzma Syed, MD, DO, chief of Infectious Diseases and director of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Center of Excellence at Good Samaritan University Hospital, has outlined the multifaceted challenges women face in combating antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Syed says these challenges arise from physiological, social, economic, and cultural factors. She addressed these issues at the World AMR Congress earlier this month, speaking on a panel focused on women's health and the current and future impacts of AMR.

“Woman are unfortunately more susceptible to antimicrobial resistance due to a variety of factors, including physiological, social, economic, and cultural reasons. Health disparities for women contribute to an increased risk of AMR, leading to worse outcomes. Factors such as delays in seeking healthcare, barriers like childcare, elder care, and transportation issues exacerbate this problem. Additionally, women face increased risk factors during pregnancy and higher rates of maternal mortality,” Syed explained.

To address these issues, Syed advocates for a focus on education, awareness, infection prevention, and ensuring timely treatment of infections. “Interventions should focus on promoting education, awareness, and infection prevention, ensuring access to healthcare, timely treatment of infections, and antimicrobial stewardship,” she emphasized.

Syed emphasized that improving outcomes for women and combating AMR requires robust policy changes. She highlighted the significance of the PASTEUR Act in this context, stating, “Wide national policies can really help improve outcomes for women and combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Bills such as the PASTEUR Act encourage the appropriate use of antimicrobials and help build a pipeline of novel antimicrobials to combat this growing public health crisis of AMR. Sepsis Alliance is a big advocate of bills like the PASTEUR Act, which will ensure we can combat AMR at a very critical time for both the national and global community.”

Additionally, Syed stressed the importance of culturally and linguistically specific advocacy and education initiatives. She noted, “We really need to combat this with widespread advocacy, awareness, and education, but we need to do this by reaching people where they are. We need to use culturally and linguistically specific approaches to empower communities with knowledge so they can have access to healthcare and so that we can achieve better outcomes for all people.”

Syed’s perspective highlights the need for a comprehensive approach to addressing AMR, focusing on policy reform, education, and tailored community engagement to effectively manage and mitigate the impact of antimicrobial resistance on women's health.