Surgical Antimicrobial Prophylaxis is the Most Common Indication for Antimicrobial Use in Australian Hospitals. Discuss. with Dr Fergus Allerton

The above statement is taken from the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare. Worryingly high rates of inappropriate use were reported. The picture is almost certainly similar in veterinary medicine. What can vets do to change the narrative? Which procedures can be safely performed without surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (SAP)? What difference does SAP make on typical surgical site infection rates? What other measures can be adopted to prevent SSIs and reduce the need for SAP? The talk will try to answer these questions and also set targets for future SAP in practice.