Behavioral Nudges to Encourage Appropriate Antimicrobial Use Among Health Professionals in Uganda.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health concern exacerbated by inappropriate antimicrobial prescribing practices, particularly in low-resource settings such as Uganda. The research aimed to develop a culturally sensitive behavioral intervention, leveraging a "nudge" strategy, to improve healthcare provider adherence to the 2016 Uganda Clinical Guidelines (UCG 2016) in five Ugandan hospitals. This intervention formed part of broader antimicrobial stewardship initiatives led by the United States Agency for International Development Medicines, Technologies, and Pharmaceutical Services Program.

Progress of Implementation of World Health Organization Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System Recommendations on Priority Pathogen-Antibiotic Sensitivity Testing in Africa: Protocol for a Scoping Review.

Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major global public health concern, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where resources and infrastructure for an adequate response are limited. The World Health Organization (WHO) Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS) was introduced in 2016 to address these challenges, outlining recommendations for priority pathogen-antibiotic combinations. Despite this initiative, implementation in Africa remains understudied.

Combating Antimicrobial Resistance Through a Data-Driven Approach to Optimize Antibiotic Use and Improve Patient Outcomes: Protocol for a Mixed Methods Study.

Background: It is projected that drug-resistant infections will lead to 10 million deaths annually by 2050 if left unabated. Despite this threat, surveillance data from resource-limited settings are scarce and often lack antimicrobial resistance (AMR)-related clinical outcomes and economic burden. We aim to build an AMR and antimicrobial use (AMU) data warehouse, describe the trends of resistance and antibiotic use, determine the economic burden of AMR in Uganda, and develop a machine learning algorithm to predict AMR-related clinical outcomes.

Enhancing infection prevention and control through hand hygiene compliance in six Ugandan hospitals using quality improvement approaches.

Introduction: Hand hygiene (HH) plays a crucial role in mitigating healthcare-associated infections. Improving HH compliance in healthcare facilities in resource-limited settings is urgently needed.

Methods: We implemented the World Health Organization (WHO) HH improvement strategy using a continuous quality improvement (CQI) approach targeting improvement in HH compliance by healthcare workers (HCWs).