Week 4 Discussion final exams

Running head: WEEK 4 DISCUSSION 1 Week 4 Discussion The evolution/transition of healthcare to an incentivized customer service industry has contributed to (at least) two public health crises. The increased need for positive facility and provider reviews have led to an opioid epidemic and the over-prescription of antibiotics directly contributes to the creation of resistant bacteria (Shallcross & Davies, 2014). I believe that as providers it is our responsibility to advocate for what’s best for our patients and our communities, and frequently, antibiotics are not necessarily the best option (despite patient/parent insistence). In order to establish best practices, we should understand current practice guidelines and best practice. In asthma, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend treating an acute asthma exacerbation with antibiotics if there is an underlying bacterial infection. The CDC (2017) further states that antibiotics are appropriate for children with UTI, URI, otitis media, pharyngitis, rhinosinusitis, and bronchiolitis; however, I (slightly) disagree with at least one of those categories. Prescribing antibiotics for pharyngitis is a common practice and we (providers) do it for a few reasons: 1. The patient and/or parent asks for them and 2. Because (most) texts say to for the prevention of rheumatic heart disease. While I was deployed recently, I had an intensive clinical experience and during our time in between patients, the provider I was working with poised an interesting question: “Why do we continue to treat strep throat with antibiotics?”. My answer mirrored the above reasons; however, after much reasoning, I have been convinced that this practice may need revisiting.