Cold hard facts

I am sure that many of you like myself were glued to the TV or Twitter, sifting through the emerging information on the terrorist attacks, trying to establish truth from misinformation. These sad events, and the many like them around the world, serve as an example of the paramount importance of cold hard facts.

As in current events, accurate dissemination of information is crucial in science and healthcare. When media outlets get it wrong, such as the recent article published by the Daily Mail on strabismus surgery, it serves to lower confidence in all those involved, from journalists to the NHS.

As a primary point of contact for the public, healthcare professionals are a keystone in the dissemination of information. And there is one area in which primary care is being called upon to raise awareness: #AntibioticResistance.

This week marks World Antibiotic Awareness Week, and the news today that bacterial resistance to last-line antibiotics has emerged in China, and has already spread to Malaysia, serves to highlight the critical but increasingly genuine prospect of common infections turning fatal due to a lack of effective treatments.

The Optical Confederation, of which the AOP is a founding member, is calling on practitioners to pledge their support on social media, to raise awareness with a thunderclap posting on Twitter, scheduled for Monday.

Sign up and show your support to be an #AntibioticGuardian.

Check out the AOP's new ‘eyes in the news’ updates in the community forum for a heads-up on the stories patients may ask you about.