During the 2024 United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Antimicrobial Resistance (UNHLM on AMR) scheduled for September, global leaders endorsed an impactful political declaration. One of the primary goals is to decrease worldwide deaths linked to Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) by 10% by the year 2030, compared to the 2019 baseline of 4.95 million deaths. Additional targets include ensuring every country provides basic water, sanitation, hygiene, and waste management in all healthcare facilities, and achieving that 90% of countries meet all World Health Organization (WHO) minimum standards for infection prevention and control at the national level by 2030. Furthermore, the UNHLM on AMR aims that at least 80% of nations will have the ability to test for drug resistance in all bacterial and fungal pathogens by 2030.
These commitments underscore the severity of the issue, as AMR is steadily becoming a global health and socio-economic threat. Its implications are profound, affecting human and animal health, food production, and environmental safety. AMR occurs when microorganisms like bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites evolve to resist antimicrobial drugs. As a result, antibiotics and other treatments lose their effectiveness, making infections harder, if not impossible, to treat—heightening the risks of disease transmission, severe illness, and mortality.
The threat posed by drug-resistant pathogens is universal, affecting people everywhere. The rise of AMR results in more severe infections, necessitating extended hospital stays, costlier antibiotics, specialized attention, and sometimes surgical procedures. These escalating medical expenses, coupled with higher mortality rates, exacerbate global healthcare costs, making AMR not just a health emergency but an economic one, thereby promoting the necessity of a One Health Approach.
What is even more concerning is that AMR is edging us towards a post-antibiotic era, where even commonplace infections may become lethal again. This proverbial storm endangers the century-long strides made in medicine. Every year, drug-resistant infections claim more than a million lives worldwide, particularly in low- and middle-income regions. Despite its gravity, this crisis remains largely unspoken. The ease of acquiring these life-saving medicines without a prescription worsens matters, as individuals often resort to antibiotics for viral infections instead of bacterial ones. The availability of such drugs leads to mistreatment of patients who deserve diligent care.
Moreover, the burden of AMR falls most heavily on lower-income countries, which grapple with strained healthcare systems and limited resources. It is clear that the global body recognizes AMR as a public health emergency, evidenced by the observation of World AMR Awareness Week (WAAW) from November 18 to 24, themed ‘Educate, Advocate, Act now’. This theme urges global action to enlighten stakeholders on AMR, push for decisive commitments, and implement concrete responses.
In summary, there’s an urgent need for increased public and stakeholder awareness regarding this health crisis. The 2024 UNGA High-Level Meeting on AMR, along with the fourth Global High-Level Ministerial Conference on AMR, offers an essential chance for political and financial pledges and to heighten accountability in tackling AMR. It’s essential for the world to act decisively and with political resolve, as this isn’t merely the health crisis of the current generation—it’s poised to become a predominant health challenge for the next if it remains unaddressed. Hence, the time for action is right now.