Implementation and outcomes of a clinician-directed intervention to improve antibiotic prescribing for acute respiratory tract infections within the Veterans' Affairs Healthcare System.

Objective: To determine whether a clinician-directed acute respiratory tract infection (ARI) intervention was associated with improved antibiotic prescribing and patient outcomes across a large US healthcare system.

Design: Multicenter retrospective quasi-experimental analysis of outpatient visits with a diagnosis of uncomplicated ARI over a 7-year period.

Participants: Outpatients with ARI diagnoses: sinusitis, pharyngitis, bronchitis, and unspecified upper respiratory tract infection (URI-NOS).