Tomorrow’s World: Collaborations, Consultations and Conversations for Change

Since their discovery in the 1940s, antibiotics have been heralded as a miracle drug saving millions of lives. Antibiotics have made the treatment of illnesses such as ear infections, pneumonia and pelvic inflammatory disease possible and when used correctly are an important part of our health system. Without effective antibiotics quality of life for individuals and communities will significantly change, making for example, the treatment of cancer or major surgery less safe (Tomson and Vlad 2014). Connected to antibiotics is Antibiotic Resistance (ABR), a phenomenon that causes bacteria to become resistant to antibiotics, making them less effective. ABR is not new and occurs naturally however, the intensity of the ABR spread and its impact on the effectiveness of treatments is of increasing concern (Levy and Marshall 2004). Our continued overuse and misuse of antibiotics has us moving into a post antibiotic era where ABR is one of the world’s most pressing public health problems threatening the quality of life for all mankind (Department of Health 2013).