The Norton Healthcare Antimicrobial Stewardship Program was recognized this year as the first and only antimicrobial stewardship center of excellence in the United States by the British Society of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. The international collaboration is part of the society’s new Global Antimicrobial Stewardship Accreditation Scheme.
The accreditation process, developed by BSAC and led by experts in antimicrobial stewardship, has set, measurable standards for stewarding antimicrobials. The society works with client organizations to demonstrate these standards are being met and award accreditation. Norton Healthcare was recognized after both a review of data and a hospital visit focused on the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program and associated Infection Prevention and microbiology services.
The aim of GAMSAS is to support health care organizations to build and sustain robust and measurable antimicrobial stewardship programs using a quality improvement approach to enable them to contribute to local, national and global data collection, which is a key ambition within the World Health Organization antimicrobial resistance action plan.
Visit NortonHealthcare.com to learn more about the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program.
BSAC has worked with teams in these hospitals to carry out a holistic assessment of their systems, processes and practice. GAMSAS strives for a collaborative approach to stewardship around the world, raising standards, sharing best practice and facilitating mentorship between communities.
Ashley Wilde, Pharm.D., BCPS-AQ ID, director, infectious diseases clinical programs and research, Norton Infectious Diseases Institute, is one of many who contributed to making this achievement possible.
“Being an antimicrobial stewardship center of excellence recognizes the significant impact pharmacy, microbiology and infection prevention teams have on patient safety and ensuring antibiotics are being used carefully. Our Antimicrobial Stewardship Program is dedicated to ensuring optimal outcomes in infected patients now and for years to come. This designation also recognizes Norton Healthcare as a regional leader in antimicrobial stewardship best practices and positions our organization to be part of a larger conversation worldwide on antimicrobial resistance,” Wilde said.
The Antimicrobial Stewardship Program is supported by a grant from Pfizer through the Norton Healthcare Foundation.