Boost in antimicrobial best practice
Professor Mark Bowen, University of Nottingham
The percentage of equine veterinary practices with policies on antimicrobial use in horses has seen a significant boost over the past year, according to the BEVA.
A survey by the association last year found that only one per cent of equine practices had written policies on the responsible use of antimicrobials - a figure which has risen to 66 per cent in just 12 months.
Last year, the BEVA launched its Protect ME campaign to promote antimicrobial stewardship. Mark Bowen, BEVA Council member and professor of veterinary internal medicine at the University of Nottingham, said: "To date we have had around 2500 downloads of BEVA’s Protect ME toolkit…
"We are delighted with the profession’s voluntary engagement with this important issue. It clearly demonstrates the weight equine practice places on preserving effective antibiotics for the future."
This year's Protect ME campaign will focus on client education. Fact sheets, posters and light-hearted comic strips have been created by the BEVA for members to share with their clients, at the surgery or via social media.
The resources are aimed at helping practices to explain to horse owners about the significance of antimicrobial resistance, to help them understand why antimicrobials are not always required.
The Equine Veterinary Journal (EVJ) has adopted an antimicrobial stewardship policy in its author guidelines - the first publication in the world to do so. Other journals are now being encouraged to follow suit.
EVJ editor Celia Marr said: "There has been widespread support for EVJ’s antimicrobial stewardship policy by authors, indicating the importance that all parts of the equine profession place on the judicious use of antimicrobials. EVJ will be releasing a special online issue on antimicrobial resistance in 2014 to reiterate our commitment."
Veterinary practices are being urged to help owners safely dispose of any unused and expired pet medicines - not just antibiotics - during November's Animal Medicines Amnesty. 
