THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Health Minister Veena George said that all family health centres (FHCs) in the state will be converted to antibiotic-smart family health centres this year.
She also said that all panchayats will be made antibiotic literate panchayats by creating awareness against anti-microbial resistance.
“The Kerala Anti-microbial Resistance Surveillance Network (KARS-NET) has been expanded to 40 hospitals. It will be expanded to more hospitals this year. It is intended to completely stop the use of antibiotics without a doctor’s prescription in 2024,” said Veena.
She announced that the Ozhalapathi Family Health Centre in Palakkad has become the second antibiotic-smart hospital in the country. Hospitals that achieve 10 goals as per guidelines to prevent the overuse of antibiotics are declared antibiotic-smart hospitals.