AMR SYMPOSIUM: CALL FOR ABSTRACTS (DEADLINE - 29TH OCT 2017)

Friday, October 06, 2017

Background

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has been identified as a global threat. Antibiotic resistance is accelerated by misuse of antibiotics, which is a major problem in Nigeria. As at 2014, the O’Neill report estimated that about 10 million people will die from AMR annually by 2050 if current trends continue; 40% of these deaths will occur in Africa. Therefore, tackling antibiotic resistance is a high priority task for Nigeria.

In response to this emerging crisis, the 68th World Health Assembly (WHA) in May 2015 adopted a Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance in collaboration with the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). The plan outlines five key strategic objectives to be met as the response to control AMR through a “one health” approach. In line with the WHA resolution, The Honorable Minister of Health approved the establishment of Nigeria’s National AMR Coordinating Body at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on the 26th of November 2016. A National AMR Technical Working Group (AMR-TWG) was created comprising of stakeholders from human health, animal health, food production and environment sectors. The AMR-TWG conducted a situation analysis of AMR in Nigeria and developed a National Action Plan for AMR containment in the country. Nigeria has also enrolled in the Global Antimicrobial Surveillance System (GLASS) developed by WHO to support the Global Action Plan on AMR

As part of the implementation of Strategic Objective 1 of the Global Action Plan, to improve awareness about antimicrobial resistance, and in line with Nigeria’s National Action Plan on AMR, the WHO is coordinating the World Antibiotic Awareness Week tagged ‘Antibiotics: Handle with care’ global campaign. This week-long event raises awareness on Antibiotic resistance and encourages best practices among the public, policymakers, health, agriculture and environmental professionals. To close the week, the NCDC in collaboration with various partners is organizing a one-day symposium on AMR themed “Combating AMR through research and awareness” on the 16th November 2017. The program will include plenaries by distinguished experts in the field and is also an opportunity for AMR advocates to share their scientific work with a larger audience.

Call for Abstracts

This is a call for abstracts for poster presentation at the AMR Symposium. Abstracts submitted for consideration should be the authors’ original work. All interested persons are encouraged to submit abstracts on works that focus on (but not limited to) any of the following;

• Awareness of antibiotic resistance across all sectors: Human Health, Animal Health, Environment and Agriculture

• Appropriate/Inappropriate antibiotic use or prescribing

• Infection Prevention and Control practices in healthcare settings and communities

• Surveillance/survey on antibiotic resistant organisms

• Public health response to AMR threats in Nigeria

Abstract Submission Procedures and Deadline

Abstracts should be sent to the email: [email protected]. All abstracts should be submitted in English. Deadline for submission is October 29, 2017.

Structure of Abstracts

The abstract should not exceed 300 words. This word count includes the subheadings of the structured abstract but does not include the title, author list and their addressees or key words.

Abstracts must include the following sections:

• Background and objectives

• Methods

• Results and discussion

• Conclusion

Introduction/Background:

Address the scientific background and rationale for the study as well as the public health significance of the subject. Because of the anticipated diversity of the reviewers and those attending the conference, do not assume that everyone will be familiar with your research topic. Explain why your study is important and what question(s) it will answer. A clearly stated background sets the stage and describes the goal of the study and should include:

• A brief description of the topic and its public health significance

• Objectives, research questions or study hypothesis

Methods:

Describe the methods selected for the study. Essential points to be included in this section are:

• Study design

• Study setting

• Study population

• Eligibility criteria

• Sample size and sampling methods

• Methods of data analysis

Results:

Present the significant findings (both positive and negative) of the study that are directly related to the study objectives. This section should not include discussion of the results. Provide both absolute numbers and their percentages/proportions. Since an abstract is a citable document, the results section must contain data. It should not include such statements as “Data will be discussed”. If considerable work is needed before the conference, please state that results are preliminary.

Conclusion:

This section should be as concise as possible. Do not restate data included in the results. This section may include:

• An interpretation of the key findings and their implications on public health

• Public health actions that are recommended and/or have been implemented as a consequence of the study

Kindly note that changes cannot be made to the final abstract after it is submitted. If however, your abstract is accepted and significant changes have been made after submission of the abstract, please highlight the changes in your presentation.

Formatting

• Text should be left aligned

• Use font Times New Roman, size 12, 1.5 spacing.

• Each subheading should be in bold font.

• Do not include any tables or graphs in the abstract.

• Avoid abbreviations; where used, mention them in full the first time they appear.

• Use italics for scientific names.

Abstract title

• The title should be descriptive but concise.

• Avoid subtitles if possible.

• Write the title in sentence case and only capitalize proper nouns and scientific names where appropriate e.g. Plasmodium falciparum.

• Do NOT use abbreviations or acronyms in the abstract title.

Authors

• First author: Provide first name, initials of the middle name (if any), and the last name e.g. David W. Meyers

• Co-authors: List each co-author in order of contribution by typing their first and middle names as initials followed by their last name in full (e.g. W. Grisham, M. S. Pollock)

• Provide the organizational affiliations of the first author and all co-authors

• Indicate the corresponding author with an underline and provide their email address and telephone number plus their alternate contacts

• Provide the email address and telephone number of the first author if the latter is not the corresponding author

Key words

Please include 4 – 6 key words. Use terms listed in the Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) from the Index Medicus (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/meshhome.html).

Conflict of interest

Authors need to declare any conflict of interest.

Evaluation Criteria

Each abstract will be evaluated by three independent reviewers according to the following criteria:

1. Background and rationale of the study

2. Appropriateness of methods

3. Presentation of results

4. Conclusions and interpretations of results

5. Public health significance

6. Overall clarity of the abstract

Based on the evaluation, each abstract will be labeled as either “accepted for poster presentation” or “not accepted”. All authors will be informed on acceptance or non-acceptance

Sample Abstract

Title: Antibiotic Consumption, Resistance and Drivers of Resistance in Nigeria, 2017

Authors: Abiodun Egwuenu, Joshua Obasanya, Iruka Okeke, Oladipo Aboderin, Adebola Olayinka, Dooshima Kwange, Abiodun Ogunniyi, Estelle Mbadiwe, Love Omoniyei, Hamzat Omotayo, Mercy Niyang, Fatima Abba, Frank Kudla, AMR-TWG, Chikwe Ihekweazu

Name of corresponding author: Abiodun Egwuenu

Email:

Phone number:

Introduction

It is projected that by 2050, 40% of 10 million deaths from Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) will occur in Africa. Understanding the AMR situation in Nigeria will provide an excellent case study of the challenges faced by low-income countries.

Methods

The information was derived from review of reports, programmatic data and documents, literature search, key informant interviews and a series of systematic reviews. Data was entered into purpose-built templates and synthesized thematically.

Results

In Nigeria, the ratio of licensed pharmacies to over-the-counter medicine stores was 15 to 1 in 2016. A systematic review determined that median prevalence of persons using antibiotics without prescription to be 46.8%. In animals, antibiotics such as tetracyclines constituted over 80% of antimicrobials sold or used in 2014 and 2015. Antibiotic resistance was documented in humans, to drugs recommended by the country’s treatment guidelines for commonly occurring infections such as cholera and cerebrospinal meningitis. Majority of the studies documented recovery of E. coli, non-typhoidal Salmonella and antibiotic residues from livestock, pets and animal products, most commonly in poultry. The drivers of AMR included unregulated antibiotic sales, proliferation of unlicensed medicine stores, shortage of licensed prescribers, poor AMR awareness and use of antibiotics in animals without prescription.

Conclusion

We recommend that the government enforce regulations on antibiotic sales of antibiotics to humans and animals and increase awareness on AMR in Nigerian communities. Identified gaps from the were used to develop a National Action Plan for AMR.

Conflict of interest: none

Key words: Antibiotic Resistance, Nigeria, Epidemiologic determinants, Inappropriate prescribing

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