Self-medication Has Negative Impact On Human Health: DG Health

Director General Health Services Punjab, Dr Munir Ahmed Thursday emphasised discouraging reckless use of antibiotics by general public to avoid the antibiotic resistance.

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 15th Nov, 2018 ) :Director General Health Services Punjab, Dr Munir Ahmed Thursday emphasised discouraging reckless use of antibiotics by general public to avoid the antibiotic resistance.

He was addressing a Policy and Advocacy Seminar on Antibiotic Awareness, organised by the Hepatitis and Infection Control Programme Punjab, with collaboration of the World Health Organisation, at a hotel here.

He said that self-medication especially of antibiotic medicines should be discouraged by all concerned quarters because it yielded negative impact on human health.

He said that in the recent years, the misuse of antibiotics had increased up to 36 per cent. He said that Punjab would be the first province where a comprehensive Anti-Microbial Resistance Policy would be formulated in the next few months.

Programme Manager Hepatitis & Infection Control Program Punjab Dr Zahida Sarwar, Additional Secretary Drugs Control Dr Sohail, Additional Secretary Vertical Program Dr Saadain, Professor Dr Ghayas-un-Nabi Tayyab, Dr Irfan Ahmed WHO, and representative from Shaukat Khanam Memorial Hospital, University of Veterinary Science and Agriculture Department of Punjab were present at the seminar.

Dr Zahida Sarwar said that unnecessary use of antibiotics had become a global challenge.

Technical stakeholders from various departments shared valuable inputs regarding the control of misuse of antibiotics and resistance caused by self-medication and incomplete course of antibiotics.