STAFF CORRESPONDENT

A social movement has to be formed to contain Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) of different bacteria, viruses and antifungals, speakers at a discussion said yesterday.

All the activities should be coordinated to reap the best benefit, they said at the consultation meeting with different stakeholders, organised by Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) in Dhaka.

“This (AMR) is a universal problem that can make humankind go extinct. We cannot deal with this without being serious,” said Prof Nazmul Islam, director of Communicable Disease Control at Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), while addressing the event as a special guest.

He highlighted that injudicious use, desperate marketing of the pharmaceutical companies and misconception among health professionals are among the reasons behind the evolution of the germs that can escape the drug’s efficacy.

Prof Zakir Hossain Habib, chief scientific officer at IEDCR, who has been leading the AMR surveillance in nine hospitals, presented a summary of the AMR situation in the country.

Prof Nitish Debnath, country lead of Fleming Fund Country Grant, stressed a social movement to deal with the crisis.