KARACHI: Pakistan is facing a pressing concern regarding the excessive use of antibiotics, which may lead to the emergence of drug-resistant “superbugs” that standard antibiotics can’t treat the diseases, top officials from the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), National Institute of Health (NIH), and infectious disease specialists have sounded the alarm on this issue.
These superbugs pose a significant challenge to healthcare systems globally, contributing to approximately 1.27 million yearly deaths attributed to antibiotic resistance
At an awareness session on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) hosted by Commsman Consultants here on Tuesday, the experts labelled AMR a “silent pandemic” and one of the gravest healthcare threats to Pakistan, already contributing to hundreds of thousands of deaths each year.
Dr Faisal Sultan, CEO of Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital Lahore and an infectious diseases expert, called on federal and provincial governments to strictly enforce the sale of antibiotics by prescription only.
He also proposed a Unified Prescription App to regulate the sale of antibiotics nationwide. “Antibiotics revolutionized healthcare, enabling advanced surgeries and treatments. But their overuse is now making even routine infections, like typhoid, untreatable.”
AMR occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites develop resistance to medications designed to eliminate them, making infections harder to treat. In Pakistan, over prescription, self-medication, and lack of regulation have led to a dangerous rise in drug-resistant infections. The consequences include prolonged hospital stays, higher medical costs, and rising death rates.
Asim Rauf, CEO of DRAP, noted that despite guidelines requiring prescription-only sales of antibiotics, enforcement has been weak at the provincial level.
“The sale of medicines is a provincial matter, and we need their governments to take this issue seriously,” he said. He also stressed the importance of media in raising public awareness of AMR, citing The Lancet, which estimates AMR causes around 1.27 million deaths globally each year. Pakistan is on a similar trajectory.
Rauf emphasized that DRAP plans to crack down on unethical pharmaceutical marketing practices that encourage the over prescription of antibiotics. “While regulatory authorities will enforce stricter guidelines, the media must play its role in spreading the message about AMR,” he added.
Dr Muhammad Salman, CEO of NIH Islamabad, presented concerning statistics from a survey of 11 leading hospitals, showing that 92% of hospitalized patients were prescribed antibiotics, demonstrating widespread overuse.
He revealed that NIH is working on the second phase of the National Action Plan for AMR, set to be completed by year’s end, and called for government and donor support to fully implement it. “There is a serious lack of AMR awareness in Pakistan — even among healthcare professionals and scientists,” he said, urging educational campaigns to address this gap.
Dr Obaidullah, Director of Quality Assurance at DRAP, pointed out that over 3,000 metric tons of antibiotic raw materials were imported into Pakistan in 2019 alone. He also expressed concerns about unregulated antibiotic use in the poultry sector, noting that unchecked use contributes to the rise of drug-resistant bacteria in humans.
“We need stricter oversight of antibiotics, not just in healthcare but across other sectors like agriculture,” he stressed.
Zeeshan Ahmed, Chief Operating Officer of Getz Pharma, highlighted the need for collaboration between the pharmaceutical industry, regulators, and healthcare providers to combat AMR.
“Media must emphasize the dangers of self-medication, which is making many antibiotics useless,” Ahmed said. He also called for community pharmacists to be present at pharmacies to prevent self-medication and incentivized prescriptions.
The session ended with consensus: Pakistan needs urgent action to enforce regulations, raise public awareness, and improve coordination between federal and provincial governments. Without these measures, the country risks a healthcare crisis with untreatable infections, rising medical costs, and preventable deaths.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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