Earlier this week, the United States celebrated the success of The AMR Challenge during the United Nations General Assembly in New York City. Launched in September 2018, the Challenge received nearly 350 commitments from 33 countries to implement specific actions to combat antibiotic resistance (also known as antimicrobial resistance or AMR). Led by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), The AMR Challenge is one of the most ambitious global initiatives to date to combat the growing threat of antibiotic resistance.

NACCHO committed to the Challenge, along with several of our local health department members. Read on to learn more about how these local public health agencies are taking action to address AMR and promote antibiotic stewardship.

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LACDPH) will continue to prevent, detect, and respond to antibiotic-resistant infections in healthcare settings, using surveillance data to identify threats requiring response. LACDPH will promote the appropriate use of antibiotics among the public and human and veterinary healthcare providers, and will train healthcare staff across the continuum of care in appropriate antibiotic use and stewardship.

Chicago Department of Public Health
As a local health department responsible for direct healthcare facility engagement, the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) commits to continued surveillance and response to antibiotic-resistant infections in healthcare settings. CDPH conducts onsite investigations and advises providers on infection control gap mitigation. CDPH will leverage surveillance data for public health response and train healthcare staff across the care continuum in core antimicrobial stewardship principles and appropriate antimicrobial use. CDPH commits to working with state, local, academic, and clinical partners to establish regional standards for infection control and antimicrobial stewardship by 2020 to reduce emergence and spread of multi-drug resistant bacteria.

Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services
California’s Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services is committed to improving surveillance of antibiotic resistance by hosting a carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) collaborative with the California Department of Public Health to create dialogue, education, and awareness among skilled nursing facilities and acute care hospitals. By December 2019, the Long Beach Department aims to have antibiotic resistance subject matter experts throughout many healthcare facilities. The Department made CRE reportable locally, and commits to finding new ways to detect outbreaks of resistant organisms more quickly and efficiently; ensure accurate and timely reporting of outbreaks of resistant organisms in local facilities; and monitor for novel multi-drug resistant organisms.