Hospital antibiotics misused, finds study

ALMOST two-thirds of antibiotics given to patients at Beaumont Hospital were used inappropriately, a survey has found.

The research, overseen by consultant pharmacologist Dr Edmond Smyth, found 58% of antibiotics were given to patients outside the first 24 hours after surgery, when they should no longer be administered.

The purpose of the antibiotics in question is to prevent infection in patients after surgery. They are administered prior to surgery and are not generally used outside the first 24-hours post surgery.