When bacteria get better at defending themselves against antibiotics, and our antibiotics don’t work as well, we call this antibiotic resistance. Over time, antibiotics may even stop working at all. This puts lives at risk, because we need antibiotics to help our bodies fight and protect against serious infections caused by bacteria.
When to use antibiotics
Antibiotics are for fighting serious infections
caused by some bacteria. If your symptoms are
caused by a virus, an antibiotic won’t help.
Even when used correctly, antibiotics can have side effects such as skin rashes, diarrhoea, or thrush.
Also, resistant bacteria may survive and later
develop into an infection that will be hard, maybe even impossible, to treat.
The global threat of antibiotic resistant bacteria
Each time antibiotics are used, there is a chance that some bacteria will survive and be resistant to future treatment – which is why you should use
them according to medical advice and only when it
is absolutely necessary.
If we overuse antibiotics, they might not work when you really need them and leave you vulnerable to new infections for a while.
How can you help?
Listen to your health professional’s advice if they say antibiotics won’t work for you. 
When you are ill they will recommend the best possible treatments and explain why they will work for you
.
A recommendation may include prescribed antibiotics, but only if they are likely to be effective.
By following medical advice you can help keep antibiotics effective into the future.
Our children will thank you for that.
Our commitment to you
• Your health is very important to us – we promise to treat your illness in the best way possible
• We won’t prescribe antibiotics when they are likely to do more harm than good
If you have any questions about the use of antibiotics, please ask your health provider or pharmacist.
Check out some of the videos below for a better understanding of the problems associated with Antibiotics
Have a look at the resources and information available from the following Health Services, NGO’s and providers
The following videos also provide some really interesting viewing about this problem.