Capacity building to address antimicrobial resistance in remote Australia: The inaugural HOT NORTH Antimicrobial Academy.

Background: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) for some pathogens in Australia are considerably higher in rural and remote compared to urban regions. The inaugural Hot North Antimicrobial Academy was a 9-month educational programme aimed to build workforce knowledge and capacity in antimicrobial use, audit, stewardship, surveillance and drug resistance in remote primary health care.

Methods: The Academy was advertised to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, regional and remote healthcare workers.

Mosquitoes provide a transmission route between possums and humans for Buruli ulcer in southeastern Australia.

Buruli ulcer, a chronic subcutaneous infection caused by Mycobacterium ulcerans, is increasing in prevalence in southeastern Australia. Possums are a local wildlife reservoir for M. ulcerans and, although mosquitoes have been implicated in transmission, it remains unclear how humans acquire infection.

Coming to town: Reaching agreement on a thorny issue.

Objective: To describe the process of gaining consensus across regional organisations in formulating measures to improve coordination of care for people from remote Far North Queensland communities coming to town (Cairns) to access health care.

Design: This is a descriptive study that includes survey data from workshop participants.

Setting: Coming to town for health care poses great challenges, especially for Indigenous Australians from remote communities.