THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Building on the success of the ‘Ernakulam Model’, which demonstrated that door-to-door campaigning reduces antibiotic misuse, the health department plans to expand the initiative statewide.
While launching the campaign at Vattiyoorkavu UPHC in Thiruvananthapuram, Health Minister Veena George said that the department’s intervention led to a 20-30% reduction in antibiotic use over the past year.
“Awareness is crucial for antibiotic literacy,” the minister said, noting that health workers are visiting homes to educate the public.
On Wednesday, she joined health workers in Vattiyoorkavu to promote the cause. In Ernakulam, more than 2,250 ASHA workers conducted door-to-door campaigns, reaching 2 lakh homes, including rural, urban, tribal, and migrant areas. Each worker visits 50 homes monthly with support from medical officers, Middle-Level Service Providers, and other coordinators.
Awareness efforts also targeted local representatives and guest workers in their native languages. The campaign is part of a broader strategy to reduce antibiotic misuse, including issuing antibiotics in blue-coloured envelopes for identification and ensuring they are only dispensed with a doctor’s prescription.
The minister also announced plans for all hospitals to become “antibiotic smart,” in line with the World Health Organisation’s warning that antimicrobial resistance could lead to one crore deaths globally by 2050 if antibiotics are misused.