Monday, December 12, 2011


Department of Microbiology & Fermentation Technology, Sam Higginbottom Institute of Agriculture, Technology & Sciences, Allahabad is organizing the Second National Conference on “Antimicrobial Resistance : A Cause for Global Concern” from 6 - 8th February, 2012 at Allahabad.  We invite all concerned to attend the conference. We wish the conference every success.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

The ClustrMap`s visits-meter reveals that Today this BLOG recorded 10,010th visit from interested readers.
Taking into account also the visits to the associate blogs, Indo-Asian Antibiotic Resistance Scenario and Global Antibiotic Resistance Scenario, the total visitor number comes to nearly 20,000.
The readers of the BLOG are spread over more than 25 states of India and  are from more than 100 countries of the World.
We thank one and all for taking interest in the cause of reducing
the problem of Antibiotic Resistance.

Monday, October 17, 2011


Fatal resistance


Antibiotic Resistance has spread 'widely and wildly' among the disease causing bacteria. Resistant bacteria are everywhere; in hospitals, in community, inside our body -on our body, in agriculture, in animals, in the environment surrounding us,..... everywhere. You think of a place and they are there. They make the use of antibiotics ineffective, when we take them, when we are ill.



 "Down to Earth" magazine has brought out an issue with a cover story on "Antibiotic Resistance", which has contributions by Vibha Varshney, Dinsa Sachan and Sonal Matharu, who have talked to experts in this field, to bring into focus all aspects of this issue. Dinsa Sachan contacted me to elicit my views on the issue, which reflect in the cover story. We are thankful to her and the magazine for helping in spreading the awareness about the problem of the emerging threat of "Antibiotic resistance". - Dr. A.J. Tamhankar



The details of the article can be found at,     http://www.downtoearth.org.in/content/fatal-resistance .



Friday, October 7, 2011


Last year under the IIMAR-ReAct cooperation scheme IIMAR had awarded some research grants to students doing research projects in the field of Antibiotic Resistance for their post-graduation. Out of these, Ms Pragya Shakya, an MD student at R.D. Gardi Medical College, Ujjain recently presented a poster based on her research at the 1st Global forum on Bacterial Infections in New delhi, for which she received the Best Poster award.
The title of presentation was ‘Antimicrobial resistance among commensal E.coli isolated from stool samples of school-going children in Ujjain, India’.  Pragya found high  resistance to penicillins, cephalosporins,  tetracyclines  and  cotrimoxazole  among the isolated  commensal E.Coli. Strains resistant to penicillins and cephalosporins were  also more likely to be resistant to fluoroquinolones. ESBL production (13%)  among  commensals indicated its spread in the community. The paper also concluded that frequent  use of antimicrobials for self limiting  illnesses in the community can be a factor  responsible  for  development of resistance  in bacteria.
Community level surveillance of commensal bacteria appears to be a pre-requisite for designing antimicrobial stewardship programmes.
IIMAR congratulates Pragya.

Sunday, October 2, 2011


1st Global Forum on Bacterial Infections in New Delhi, 
October 3-5, 2011. 
The 1st Global Forum on Bacterial Infections: Balancing Treatment Access and Antibiotic Resistance will focus on aspects of antibiotic access and resistance with particular relevance to low- and middle-income countries.
 The meeting will bring together policymakers, clinicians, public health programme managers and research experts from a variety of disciplines and sectors to introduce and evalutate policy innovations designed to work in low-resouce countries.

Monday, September 19, 2011

The Path of Least Resistance 
The BBC radio recently broadcasted A 30 min long radio program on the ABR problem, with reflections of Dr David Livermore of HPAProfessor Otto Cars of ReAct, and Chief Medical Officer of UK Dame Sally Davies. The Audio of the radio program is available here.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011


Why Subir Ghosh left a  pharmaceutical company ??

Subir Ghosh spent the first three years of his professional career in sales and marketing of a pharmaceutical company. Then he left it and opted for other carriers……….WHY ???????

Subir Ghosh stumbled upon http://save-antibiotics.blogspot.com/ liked it and expressed his wish to join IIMAR.

When I realized that Subir Ghosh had worked with a pharmaceutical company once and because of his experience at the company, is deeply concerned about antibiotic use or really to say ANTIBIOTIC MISUSE, I requested him to contribute something for us.  He suggested a piece from his site http://www.write2kill.in. We have edited it suitably to make it fit here.
We will welcome any other similar contributions.

While Subir tells us a story from his life, the same trend exists all over the world. And corrective measures are required all over the world, then and then only there is some salvation. Let us hope the stakeholders in this area become awake and do something remedial.

Over to SUBIR………

…………….When I was in XXXX pharmaceutical company  in 1988, the compnay had just reintroduced its phenoxymethyl penicillin. A wonderful drug to start with. But the company would simply not meet the demand, because at that time it had already launched norfloxacin, and was on the verge of launching ciprofloxacin. And for other things there was always cephalexin (at that time).

Shortly after I landed in Agartala towards the end of 1988, some seemingly philosophical questions confronted me. ..…This was, after all, my first job and I intended to retain it. Come hell or high water. The issue of a philosophical dilemma was posed because I was a simpleton, and hadn’t still lost my innocence. There was reason for me to be upset over the question of what was right, and what wasn’t.
It was still early in one’s life to throw away ideals to the winds. So I started off as ethically as I would. Within weeks it dawned on me that I was living in a fool’s paradise. I was in Tripura as a medical representative, to sell drugs for a leading pharmaceutical company. Here you couldn’t meet your sales targets if you behaved like a gentleman. For, everyone else around wasn’t. A gentleman, I mean. From the doctors to the retailers, from the stockists to the company warlords. It didn’t matter how you sold your medicines, as long as you did.
After the first month (when I failed to meet my target), I decided to hard-sell. From the doctors to the retailers. I tried every trick in the trade. …… I didn’t give a damn, and neither did the doctors. My targets were the young docs there, of my age; they took to me well. I started doing relatively well for myself. My company’s products did well too. For me it was a job, it was a question of livelihood. Till one fine day……
That fine day was an early morning when the 1988-89 winter days were in their last throes. Morning OPD hours would always be chaotic. If I was there, the young docs knew it was fun hour.
Till I threw a poser at the boss of the lot. “You sure my products figure in your prescriptions”, I smiled with a glint. The friendliness may have been there in my smile, but not in the eyes. This particular boss and all his understudies were in my pocket. I had befriended them, then bought off their allegiance with my unending samples and overflowing gifts. And so this animal, proceeded to prove his loyalty. The patient he was examining was a young and pregnant tribal girl. Young, very young to be a mother. Still in her teens, I still am sure. The doctor scribbled the prescription and showed it off shamelessly. To yours truly. It took me a moment to realise what he was asking this girl to ingest over the next few days. It was norfloxacin, 2 tabs TID, for five days.
If you are not in the business of drugs, then you wouldn’t know what it meant. So, let me explain to you as briefly as I can.
That was the time when antibiotics were becoming drugs of the past, antibacterials were in. The first to hit the market big time was this antibacterial called norfloxacin. It was potent, and it was expensive. During those days my company sold it at Rs 8 per tab. Of course, over time prices dropped drastically as the demand skyrocketed. But then, coming back to the drug itself. This was reckoned to be a powerful drug for many reasons, one of them being the fact that its half-life was on the higher side. In other words, it would remain in the bloodstream longer. For this very reason you did not require too much of it, and not certainly so frequently as you had to swallow the earlier-day antibiotics. If the girl to whom this was prescribed followed the regimen, at the end of the course she would have little other than norfloxacin flowing in her blood. No, she wouldn’t have died. But this was something that, to me, was simply not done.
I looked at the girl again. She seemed resigned to fate. She stood there without uttering a word. All the monosyllabic speaking was done by the gnarled old man. Her father he was, obviously; one who too seemed resigned to fate. They were tribals. …. The girl’s pachra and risha (skirt and blouse, to us) were wearing out. A look at the two and you would know they did not live off more than Rs 10 a day. I looked at the girl, into her eyes. She was staring at the prescription, a semblance of hope in her eyes. Her gaze sapped something inside me.
No, this is just not done. The prescription is an overkill for a urinary tract infection (UTI), dangerous in fact. I was furious with the physician. The banter went to hell, and I made the man rewrite the prescription, making him drop my product and opt instead for a much mild antibiotic. The doc didn’t like it a wee bit; this after all I had made him do in front of his juniors. The bonhomie between me and the doctors ended then and there.
On my part, I made up my mind that whatever happens or doesn’t, I am not going to make a career out of selling medicines. Then on, I hated the pharmaceutical industry. It was ruthless, it was powerful. Without scruples. And it did the dirty job through callous medical representatives.
I did work as an MR for a short while again because I needed a job. But I couldn’t do as well as I had earlier. You can’t sell medicines if you play it straight. The pharmaceutical industry was rich and influential. The MBBS folks did not know so much about drugs as the B Pharms did. There was nothing called a level-playing field. And MRs would do anything to meet targets. You coaxed or armtwisted pharmacists. You cajoled or bought off doctors. …. the pharmaceutical industry was on a roll. If there were losers in this coldblooded game, it were the patients. The people. The people have no idea how much of gunieapigs they are being reduced to. Pharma companies actually control our lives more than you would believe ……... Reality is scarier.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011


On behalf of and with encouragement from IIMAR, Mohini Adke, Assistant Professor, KTHM college, Nashik, Maharashtra, India, has started the cause - STOP- Antibiotic Resistance on `facebook`. Please join the cause here http://www.causes.com/causes/search?q=stop+antibiotic+resistance 

Friday, July 15, 2011

Response to the article

Response by - Dr. R. D. Kulkarni
Professor & Head, Dept. of Microbiology, SDM College of Medical Sciences & Hospital, Dharwad - 580009 (Karnataka)

 Statements in the Article                                                   Response                                                            
1
My strong feeling is that we Microbiologists, especially those with MBBS, MD hold joint responsibility for this sorry state of affairs.

Yes agreed.
They also should own the responsibility.

The drug resistant strains develop in the community and are transported to the hospital where they concentrate. Use of antibiotics as a reflex without logic, at all levels including (and mainly) the peripheral, private health care setting are the factories of drug resistant pathogens.

It is never taught in the medical colleges during the medicine lectures or clinics that not only the infections but the antibiotic also should be diagnosed. Choice of antibiotic is a logical and analytical process. But unfortunately most of the clinicians including the busy academicians learn about the antibiotics from the pharmaceutical houses.

Microbiologists in the lab are certainly responsible but are not the culprits. The one, who write antibiotic prescriptions for material gains like foreign trips, plush cars, free conference registrations, pleasure trips under the banner of academics etc. are the once who have created the menace.

The MD or MBBS microbiologists’ contribution is their ignorance and apathy to the problem. They consider that it is not their responsibility to act. They are satisfied only to preach, not practice.

2
Most Microbiologists are safely ensconced in their labs with no inkling of what is going on in the wards.

Yes, agreed.
3
A lot of importance is given to making an impeccable report that cannot be proved wrong by anybody.

Not true.

Most microbiologists do not feel that it is important to take pains in preparing an impeccable report. The common assumption is that most clinicians do not understand and try to understand anything about the report and microbiology.

4
Gram-negative bacilli in two samples of blood is a dire emergency.

The problem of drug resistance can hardly be related to blood culture. This is an investigation performed only in the big hospitals of the metropolitan cities. Most tertiary care centers also do this investigation rarely. Forget PUO, blood culture is hardly ever ordered for diagnosis of typhoid fever. The biggest practice of medicine is in the community; and not in elite hospitals, where the drug resistant pathogens are generated. In the elite hospitals and academic institutes also protocols and policies are used cosmetically only as a façade.


5
Generally the report is given only after a thorough identification (this may be important in case of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia-very rare).

Yes it is important to provide the report after through identification.Stenotrophomonas maltophilia or Haemophilus or brucella or E. coliwill be identified only after through identification and the treatment varies as per the pathogen. All are Gram-negative bacilli from blood culture must not be subjected to direct sensitivity. This may be a useful option for neonatal septicemia or urinary tract infections.

The important issue is that Gram-negative bacilli form other samples like endotracheal tube, catheter tips etc. are unnecessarily sent to the laboratory for culture and sensitivity. The ‘laboratories report and clinicians treat’ the contamination.

6
The patient is saved if a direct sensitivity is done and report given as GNB sensitive to –xxx antibiotics.

For therapy before identification and sensitivity report empirical antibiotics are there.

Unfortunately our clinicians feel that we have only pipracillin (taxzobactam), Imipenem, meropenem as the empirical antibiotics. No one wants to follow the policy established at the center.

A commercial and non-scientific term; ‘Higher Antibiotic’ is successfully established in the medical world by the people who have vested interest in the sale of antibiotics. 

7
Another strategy is to phone up and suggest a drug for Gram neg sepsis to the clinician. It will also prevent misuse of high-end antibiotics.

Clinicians are very happy to get a quick result from Microbiology and are incredulous when you phone the first time. They ask “But don’t you need 48 hrs to say that?”

Most clinicians consider it below dignity to take an opinion from a microbiologist or a pharmacologist. They however, are ready to catch a suggestion from a medical representative who is a BSc or even BA.

What we need to implement is not just a judicious policy but a wise and sane attitude. Microbiologists feel that clinicians are callous and clinicians feel that microbiologists are not practical.

NB –
Most of the ideas employed in the usage of antibiotics are borrowed especially from America. We have certainly a very good pool of experienced thinkers. Let us not inflate the facts to scary levels. MRSA may be a frightening term in US but in India a lot of hospitals have reported isolations rates above 50%. However, there are hardly any reports of deaths because of MRSA in uncomplicated infections in this country. The same is the case for ESBL and AmpC producers.

Let us not be obsessed with the fear psychosis of intractable drug resistance. The only organism which is really posing a problem is acinetobacter especially in the neonatology units.

Let us understand the problem. Assess it on the basis of facts as we see them around us without being prejudiced by American viewpoint. A lot of effort is really essential for MDR and XDR tuberculosis which is addressed less emphatically compared to the other pathogens. 

Monday, July 11, 2011

`Regulations to prevent Antibiotics Resistance & Promotion of Rational use of antibiotics`- Suggestions to Planning commission Constituted working Group

Dear all
Is there anything you would like to see included in `Regulations to prevent Antibiotics Resistance & Promotion of Rational use of antibiotics`. Dr Mira shiva is a member of the Planning commission Constituted working Group on `Regulations on Drugs & Food`. She will make an endeavor to include these suggestions in the final document. Pl send your suggestions to antibio.resistance@gmail.com.  
Dr.A.J.Tamhankar

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Anti-microbial resistance – Who is responsible? Lab or clinician?

Let us all Join together------
Several associations scattered all over India are working for spreading the knowledge about the problem of  `Antimicrobial Resistance` (AMR) and making efforts to reduce the menace. IIMAR encourages all such efforts and wishes that we should all be together in solving the problem of AMR. 
Towards this, we will make available space here for all these organizations to introduce themselves to others, so that several joint efforts can be launched.
Let us know today about  the `Academy of Clinical Microbiologists www.clinicalmicrobio.org .
A group of Microbiologists in Trivandrum , mainly working in the Govt. Medical College have formed `Academy of Clinical Microbiologists` to promote clinical microbiology which is totally neglected by microbiologists and generally discouraged by clinicians. The Group now has over 200 members all over India and a Triennial conference is held regularly, next one being  due in October 2011, tentatively on 15th and 16th.
Dr. kavita Raja, Professor of Microbiology, SreeChitra Tirunal Instt. of Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum, Kerala, informed about it. I requested her to also write about her ideas.
From my personal discussions with many I have generally found that many MBBS,MD clinicians do not have much interaction with the lab microbiologists and recommend the antibiotics from experience or  then sometimes there are ego problems. Dr. Kavita Raja gives her opinion about this and many other things. We thank Dr Kavita for coming forward to give a write up. She suggests a  a three-tier set-up in the labs with a doctor in charge of issuing reports that have a suggestion for treatment, a Medical microbiologist with PhD in charge of different sections in the lab and graduate technicians to carry out all the procedures.
Dr.A.J. Tamhankar 

Anti-microbial resistance – Who is responsible? Lab or clinician?

Dr. KAVITA RAJA

India has a large pool of scientists, doctors and technicians working in Microbiology. Now they are either duplicating each other’s work or competing to get a higher status in the lab/Hospital. This has resulted in a total divide between the clinician with his patient and the lab with different categories of workers. The patient does not benefit from the millions invested in highly advanced tests. Test reports from Microbiology often reach after treatment has been decided or after discharge /death of the patient. The antibiotic sensitivity done in labs so meticulously, ends up in the wastebasket. A full course of empirical therapy that seeks to cover all bacteria, fungi and even sometimes viruses, not to mention protozoa leads to a rising resistance by all the microbes mentioned.
My strong feeling is that we Microbiologists, especially those with MBBS, MD hold joint responsibility for this sorry state of affairs. Most Microbiologists are safely ensconced in their labs with no inkling of what is going on in the wards. A lot of importance is given to making an impeccable report that cannot be proved wrong by anybody. Gram-negative bacilli in two samples of blood is a dire emergency. Generally the report is given only after a thorough identification (this may be important in case of Stenotrophomonas maltophilia-very rare). The patient is saved if a direct sensitivity is done and report given as GNB sensitive to –xxx antibiotics. Another strategy is to phone up and suggest a drug for Gram neg sepsis to the clinician. It will also prevent misuse of high-end antibiotics. Clinicians are very happy to get a quick result from Microbiology and are incredulous when you phone the first time. They ask “But don’t you need 48 hrs to say that?”
The present policy is that Microbiologists with MD and MSc PhD are clubbed together as “Microbiologist” and most doctors even do not know that there is a doctor in the lab. I have NO bias against the scientists in Microbiology, but my idea is that they have to be given an independent existence in a lab. They should deal with the quality control and general day-to-day management of the lab, while the doctor Microbiologist should form a link between the lab and the clinician - this is the CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGIST.
The Clinical Microbiologist should be an expert in use of antibiotics and Doctors with MD should be encouraged to undergo training under a practising clinical microbiologist for a year. The Clinical Microbiologist should conduct Ward rounds and help in prescribing antibiotics to culture positive cases. When he/she becomes confident and the clinicians start relying on her, even empirical antibiotic prescribing can be taken up.
This will control wanton use of antibiotics in hospitals, better quality in the lab due to the services of a PhD and cheaper, effective infection control. I am actually practising this in my hospital, which is a superspecialty one and those who follow my advice find that their patients, if infected have sensitive organisms only!!!!
I feel that all doctors working in Microbiology should join and work to promote clinical microbiology, which may be the answer to this AMR problem.

Why cant we in India also have a three-tier set-up in the labs with a doctor in charge of issuing reports with a suggestion for treatment, a Medical microbiologist with PhD in charge of different sections in the lab and graduate technicians to carry out all the procedures. The manpower is there, but totally disorganized. The whole system has to be revamped with the Govt. insisting that every lab in a referral hospital should have all three categories and that one cannot be substituted for the other. Each category should then be allotted different designations, like-
Consultant/ Professor – Doctor
Scientist/Senior scientific officer – PhD with MScMicrobiology/MScMLT
Technician/Senior Technologist – BScMLT/MscMLT
Technical assistant –DMLT
In the above hierarchy, technicians will also have much scope for further studies and promotion prospects commensurate with level of education. Scientists can be graded as A,B,C,D,E etc. on seniority or merit basis ,as is done in other Departments.
Another advantage here is that different doctors can be put in charge of different sections and they can hone their skills in each area. They are not bothered with the day-to-day management of the lab, like seeing if the coagulase test is being done with fresh plasma or whether the technician is counting the colonies in the Urine culture. They can concentrate on conveying the relevant information on treatment to the clinician and also follow-up on the patients
The scientists in their respective sections can ensure quality control and also engage themselves in developing new tests or improving the existing tests. They are not bothered by doctors asking for this or that result. They can take up training programmes, PhD guideships etc without compromising on the quality of reporting in the lab.
Technicians and Technical assistants will find that when they are two categories, they complement each other’s work.
A well-organised set-up like this only, can even think of tackling the AMR menace. The authorities will do well to understand the important role played by each category and support their activities in a proper manner, without clubbing all as “Lab people”. Without such a lab no amount of discussions, guidelines or propaganda about resistance will help in eradication MDR organisms. This problem is a highly technical one unlike the AIDS epidemic, which is a social one, so it has to be tackled by technical and scientific means.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Friday, April 8, 2011

Activities of `IIMAR` Members on `World Health Day on Antimicrobial Resistance`
KTHM science college, Nashik, Maharashtra
Mr. Sandip Nerkar, a Ph.D. scholar, along with Dr. Pethkar, Professor of Microbiology, arranged an awareness programme regarding `antimicrobial resistance` in KTHM science college, Nashik for students. In this programme along with explaining the problem of antimicrobial Resistance to the students, they were also motivated for a campaign to visit hospitals/clinics in the city and explain and handover the IIMAR brochures/leaflets on awareness about Antimicrobial resistance to physicians. The students visited at least 100 clinics/hospitals in the Nashik city in Maharashtra and the physicians were motivated to make rational use of antibiotics.

Pravara Institute of Medical Sciences,Loni, Maharashtra

The Centre for Social Medicine in collaboration with Departments of Community Medicine, Pharmacology and Microbiology of  the Rural Medical College, celebrated the World Health Day 2011 from 2.30 pm to 4.30 pm on 7th April by organizing a Seminar on the Main theme: Combat Drug Resistance. Dr. Ashok Patil, Chief Executive Officer of PMT-PIMS inaugurated the Seminar and addressed the participants.
Dr. Deepak Phalke & Dr. (Mrs) S.S Avachat from Community Medicine, Ms. Namrata Tendulkar, an MBBS student, Dr. Sunil Devrukar from Microbiology and Dr. (Ms)Geeta Patil from Pharmacology Departments delivered lectures on the `WHO Theme of Antimicrobial Resistance` at the Seminar. Concluding remarks were delivered by Dr. Ravindra Kute of Indian Medical Association. The Seminar was attended by Female Health Workers, Women SHG members, General Practitioners, Pharmacists, general public and staff members.

`Centre for Public Health (CPH)` and SOCHARA, Bangalore, Karnataka
Dr. Ravi Narayan, `Community Health Advisor` to `Centre for Public Health (CPH)` and also `Equity  Society for Community Health, Awareness, Research and Action (SOCHARA)` informs that as  contribution to the World health day theme this year on Drug resistance, CPH and SOCHARA have released a document that arose as part of the  proceedings of a National seminar entitled 'Role of Public Health professionals and the Community in the Control of Antibiotic Resistance'- Report of a panel discussion.`

 KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, Orissa

An orientation programme on the ‘Rational Use of Antibiotics’ was held at School of Biotechnology, KIIT University on 7th April 2011 on the occasion of World Health Day. Mr Krushna Chandra Sahoo, a Ph.D. scholar, Dr Priyadarshi Soumyaranjan Sahu, School of Biotechnology, KIIT University and Dr Soumyakanta Sahoo, Super Religare Laboratories Limited, Kalinga hospital, Bhubaneswar, organized the programme. Dr. Mrutyunjay Suar, Director, School of Biotechnology, KIIT University presided over the programme. Prof B. C Das, Dean cum Principal, KIIMS was the chief guest of the programme. A rally was conducted involving the students of school of Biotechnology who visited different campuses under KIIT University.

R.D. Gardi Medical College, Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh 


On the Occasion of World Health Day - R.D. Gardi Medical College, Ujjain organized Education cum Awareness programmes on rational use of antibiotics for general public and community members. The programmes were held in the Social Centres at Shajapur and at Rajgarh in Madhya Pradesh. Dr. Sherly T.D. and Dr. Mercy of R.D. Gardi Medical College Ujjain discussed and presented the importance of antibiotics for mankind and emphasized the rational use of antibiotic. The presentations were followed by question and answer sessions in which community members asked queries related to the use of antibiotics. Specially designed Pamphlets on Rational use of antibiotics in local language were also distributed to the participants. (Report by Dr. Vishal Diwan)

Sample of the Antimicrobial Resistance campaign brochure prepared by IIMAR. (cliking on the photograph enlarges the image, you can download and print it then. Some more brochures are also available and they can be supplied by us. Brochures in Tamil, Hindi, Marathi are also available.)
 


Sunday, April 3, 2011

The World Health Day - April 7th 2011 - will focus on Antimicrobial Resistance.


The World Health Day- April 7th 2011 will focus on Antimicrobial Resistance. I will suggest/request that please try to arrange various programmes on or around this day.

IIMAR has ready brochures for distribution to GENERAL PUBLIC, PHYSICIANS AND PHARMACISTS. We can release it to anybody who wants to use it for creating antimicrobial resistance awareness. 

Some other Resources are mentioned below-
Brochure- http://www.who.int/world-health-day/2011/world-health-day2011-brochure.pdf
Toolkit- http://www.who.int/world-health-day/2011/WHD2011-toolkit-EN3.pdf
Fact-sheet -- http://www.who.int/world-health-day/2011/WHD201_FS_EN.pdf
Slide-showhttp://www.who.int/entity/world-health-day/2011/WHD_AMR.pps

A special section on World Health Organization´s website has now been created -- http://www.who.int/world-health-day/2011/en/index.html for more information.
Many programmes are being arranged at various places in India. Some of them are mentioned below in brief.
  • The R.D. Gardi Medical College, Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh is arranging awareness programmes in Shajapur and Rajgarh districts of Madhya Pradesh.
  • The BJP doctor cell in Gujarat is arranging a medical camp and awareness programme at vadodara, Gujarat.
  • Centre for Social Medicine at Pravara Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS - A Deemed University) at Loni in Maharashtra is organizing a Seminar on the WHO Theme on 7th April 2011 inviting General Practitioners, Pharmasists and village level health workers of Ahmednagar district at PIMS- Loni. The Faculty from Departments of Community Medicine, Microbilogy and Pharmacology of Rural Medical College, Loni will be the resource persons for the Seminar.
  • Doctors' College of Nursing,  Pudukkottai, Tamilnadu informs that Due to the election in Tamilnadu, they cannot organise any public program on April 7th. They plan to organize a week-long camp on the theme of Antimicrobial resistance on following lines tentatively from 20th April.
    1. Inaugural program - Intercollegiate meet for Students' awareness
    2. Physician awareness campaign
    3. Pharmacist awareness campaign
    4. General Public awareness campaign
    5. Community health awareness
    6. Interschool competitions
    7. Theater and drama among general public - Valedictory program
  • The SRIMUTHUKUMARAN MEDICAL COLLEGE HOSPITAL & RESEARCH INSTITUTE, CHENNAI is organising a seminar on `Antimicrobial Resistance` with a special address by Dr. Jawahar - a scientist from Indian Council of Medical Research.