Revolutionize Healthcare with Free Open-Source Antibiotic Tool
TL/DR –
Dr. Holly Frost has developed the open-source tool Outpatient Automated Stewardship Information System (OASIS) to improve antibiotic prescribing practices by using data from electronic health records and other systems. The tool, supported by The Pew Charitable Trusts, automates the tracking and reporting of antibiotic use, ensuring their appropriate distribution. OASIS has been effective in improving antibiotic prescription habits, with one study reporting a 26% improvement in the correct duration of antibiotics for children with ear infections in less than 60 days.
Holly Frost & Antibiotic Stewardship: The OASIS Tool
Senior Director for the Center for Health Systems Research at Denver Health, Holly Frost, MD, has been championing the improvement of antibiotic prescriptions in healthcare. In her antibiotic stewardship work, Frost developed a novel, open-source tool, the Outpatient Automated Stewardship Information System (OASIS), with the support of The Pew Charitable Trusts. The tool leverages health record data to optimize antibiotic use, ensuring their right distribution.
Q: How did you develop an interest in antibiotic stewardship?
As a practicing pediatrician, I observed unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions and side effects in numerous cases. I realized there was a pressing need to enhance antibiotic stewardship practices considering the increasing bacterial resistance, even for common infections.
Q: What do you find rewarding about your antibiotic stewardship work?
The rewarding part is the collaboration between patients, clinicians, health care administrations, and stakeholders. Over the past decade, we’ve made significant strides in ensuring that our interventions meet patient and family needs.
Q: How does antibiotic stewardship connect with patient care?
The goal is to enhance patient care and quality of life. Many patients have adverse drug events, such as upset stomach and rash, when prescribed antibiotics. Overusing antibiotics has led to increased bacterial resistance, making infections more difficult to treat.
Q: When did you conceive the idea to develop OASIS?
The concept originated from a project with the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We observed that clinician feedback significantly reduces unnecessary antibiotic usage. However, generating these reports cast a heavy time burden on clinical practitioners. Hence, we envisaged an automated tool, OASIS.
Q: How does OASIS curb overprescribing of antibiotics?
OASIS is a free tool that analyzes data from electronic health records and sends feedback reports to clinicians, aiding them to recognize their prescription patterns. This core element of outpatient stewardship has the potential to significantly transform prescribing practices.
Q: Can you provide an example of OASIS at work?
In a study at Denver Health, OASIS improved the duration of antibiotic prescriptions for children with ear infections by 26% in less than 60 days. It has been further implemented for other measures at Denver Health and Children’s Hospital Colorado.
Q: How can other healthcare providers start using OASIS?
Clinicians interested in using OASIS can sign up for a free membership on the OASIS website. The site hosts information, videos about the tool, as well as downloadable projects that can be modified per clinicians’ requirements.
Q: How do you foresee the impact of automated tools like OASIS on healthcare?
With OASIS, I hope that stewards, healthcare systems, and public health entities will collaborate more on stewardship efforts. Our goal is for other clinicians in the community to create their own metrics and share their projects and codes with OASIS users.
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