Generating collective solutions to reduce unnecessary antibiotic use in Vietnam (360G-Wellcome-213920_Z_18_Z)

Antibiotic resistance in Vietnam is amongst the highest in the world, driven by high levels of antibiotic use for human and animal health. However, community knowledge and understanding about the role and proper use of antibiotics is poor. There are few examples of public engagement around appropriate antibiotic use in low and middle income countries, and there is a huge need to improve public understanding. We hope to encourage community-wide change in the way people use antibiotics for treating common human and animal health problems, and how health-workers prescribe and use antibiotics in hospitals. We will train activators in participatory action research methods, and they will form groups in communities and hospitals. They will guide groups through a four-phase action cycle covering: 1. Understanding the problem of antibiotic resistance; 2. Planning and implementing strategies to tackle inappropriate antibiotic use; 3. Monitoring strategies and generating evidence; 4. Evaluating strategies and planning what to do next. We will evaluate the impact of these action groups on knowledge and behaviour through a mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods – household and hospital surveys, patient record reviews, and in-depth interviews. We will engage local researchers and policymakers through formative discussions and dissemination meetings.