Vietnam
#00277
PartialNational
Implements
#00375 Combine rapid diagnostics with prescribing decision support
Implementer
Vietnamese community health centres and research partners
Location
Vietnam16.0000, 108.0000
Description
Forty-eight community health centres in Vietnam were randomized to routine care or routine care with point-of-care C-reactive protein (CRP) testing for patients with non-severe acute respiratory infections. Testing was implemented in routine primary care alongside prescribing guidance. The intervention reduced antibiotic prescribing without evidence of compromised patient recovery.
Lessons learned
- CRP point-of-care testing must be paired with explicit prescribing guidance tied to the test result to change prescriber behaviour; the test result alone is insufficient.
- Reduced antibiotic prescribing is an intermediate outcome and should not be equated with a measured reduction in antimicrobial resistance when reporting results.
Sources
2