Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana warns against antibiotic misuse amid rising resistance

The Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana has cautioned the public about the growing misuse of antibiotics, which has contributed to the rise of antibiotic resistance, making treatments increasingly ineffective.

President of the Society, Dr. Samuel Kow Donkoh, explained that this practice puts the effectiveness of current antibiotics at risk.

In a recent interview with Channel One TV, Dr. Donkoh urged the public to refrain from self-medicating with antibiotics, particularly for conditions such as the common cold and malaria.

"There is a need for us to protect what we have. We need to safeguard the antibiotics that we currently use because when we get an infection, it is an antibiotic that we will have to use to manage the condition. If there is an abuse of these antimicrobials, resistance will continue to increase.

"Eventually, what will happen is that when you need them, they will fail you," he stated.

Dr. Donkoh stressed that if resistance continues to increase, antibiotics may no longer be effective, forcing doctors to combine multiple antimicrobial agents to treat infections.

This will not only increase the cost of treatment but also increase the risk of side effects.

"Now, when we have some conditions that require antimicrobial agents, we have to combine two or more. This increases the cost and risk of side effects. If one antimicrobial agent was sufficient, but due to emerging resistance, we have to combine two or three, we are exposed to more medicines, and eventually, mortality increases," he noted.

JKB/ ADG

You can watch today’s compilation of the Twi news below: