Antimicrobials are medicines such as antibiotics used to prevent and treat infections in humans, animals, plants, and crops. These medicines are very useful drugs and save lives. Antimicrobial medicines help people to live longer. They also help to protect people from infections when having surgery, giving birth and when receiving treatment for diseases including cancer.
When an antimicrobial medicine that previously worked to treat an infection or disease caused by a microorganism stops working or does not work as well as it did before, this is called antimicrobial resistance (AMR). AMR means that there are less treatment options available. This makes the most common infections more difficult to treat. If infections cannot be treated the risk of diseases spreading, severe illness and death increases.
The Department of Health works jointly with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to develop and implement national policy to tackle AMR using a One Health approach that recognises that the health and wellbeing of people is connected to the health and welfare of animals, biodiversity, and the environment. Further information on AMR and Ireland’s current AMR Action Plan is available on the joint AMR page at www.gov.ie/amr.