The Role of Antimicrobial Stewardship in Deterring C Difficile

Today marks the beginning of the C Diff Foundation’s 9th Annual International C Diff Conference and Health EXPO. The conference offers the opportunity for clinicians, researchers, and people affected by clostridioides difficile (CDI) to come together to listen in on the latest research, learn about investigational modalities and clinical concepts, and receive clinical and patient perspectives on this topic.

Glenn Tillotson, PhD, FIDSA, FCCP, GST Micro LLC, will be presenting at the conference on his topic titled, Antimicrobial Stewardship and Its Impact on C difficile.

Tillotson’s presentation will be streaming today at 2:40 pm EST as part of the 9th Annual International C. Diff Conference & Health EXPO.

Tillotson points out that in the hospital settings, more hospitals are adopting stewardship programs. He says the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) are trying to ensure the development of these programs are being measured properly.

And he says there is now a growing emphasis in developing stewardship programs in the private practice settings, where the largest percentage of antibiotic prescribing is happening overall.

“If we can manage or curb the antibiotic use in various sectors, we should see a positive impact on antimicrobial resistance, health care associated infections, and therefore, we should improve outcomes in terms of success rates, and reinfections,” Tillotson said.

Contagion spoke with Tillotson to learn more about the value of the conference, further insights into his presentation, including looking at the larger perspective in how antimicrobial stewardship affects many areas within health care, and the lingering effects of COVID-19 and prescribing practices in how it relates to C diff infection rates.