World Antimicrobial Awareness Week 2022:
World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (WAAW) runs from 18 to 24 November every year. It’s an international initiative to increase awareness of the growing problem of resistance to antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines. The purpose of the week is to increase awareness of global antimicrobial resistance, encourage best practices among the general public, health workers and policymakers to avoid the further emergence and spread of drug-resistant infections.
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World Antimicrobial Awareness Week 2022: Theme
This year, the theme of WAAW is “Preventing Antimicrobial Resistance Together.” World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (WAAW) is a global campaign that is celebrated annually to improve awareness and understanding of AMR and encourage best practices among the public, One Health stakeholders and policymakers, who all play a critical role in reducing the further emergence and spread of AMR.
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines it this way:
“Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in response to the use of these medicines. Bacteria, not humans or animals, become antibiotic-resistant.” Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites change over time and no longer respond to medicines, making infections harder to treat and increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness and death. As a result of drug resistance, antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines become ineffective and infections become increasingly difficult or impossible to treat.
World Antimicrobial Awareness Week: History
The World Health Organisation launched “World Antibiotic Awareness Week” in 2015 to raise global awareness and promote action to halt the emergence and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The campaign was rebranded as “World Antimicrobial Awareness Week” in 2020. The World Health Organization (WHO) projects a sense of urgency around the global issue of antibiotic resistance — and with good reason. If you develop an illness or an infection that can’t be treated in the traditional way with antibiotics, you can die.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- WHO Founded: 7 April 1948;
- WHO Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland;
- WHO Chief: Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.