Engagement with Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)

Antimicrobial resistance is turning once-curable infections into deadly threats, putting modern medicine at risk. A wide range of research is essential to find solutions to this threat and community engagement in this research is vital. Mitigating the spread of AMR requires drawing on community insights to share knowledge, shape solutions, and support and enable effective research.

What is AMR?

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) happens when bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites change over time and stop responding to the medicines that used to kill them. This means infections become harder to treat, and common medical procedures like surgery or chemotherapy become riskier. AMR can develop naturally, but it's made worse by overusing antibiotics in people and animals, and by poor infection control. As resistant microbes spread, they make illnesses last longer, increase healthcare costs, and raise the risk of death. AMR is a growing global health threat, and tackling it requires action from scientists, doctors, farmers, and governments working together.

Researchers studying antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are working across many fields to understand and combat the problem. They investigate how bacteria become resistant to antibiotics, how these resistant microbes spread between people, animals, and the environment, and how our behaviors and healthcare systems contribute to the issue. Some scientists use advanced tools like machine learning and genetic sequencing to track resistance and predict future trends. Others focus on improving public health policies, developing new treatments, and finding better ways to monitor resistance globally. Altogether, this research helps guide efforts to protect antibiotics and keep infections treatable.