Recommendation 22

Better use of diagnostic tools can reduce inappropriate prescribing.56 Diagnostic tools are those which can help diagnose what infection a patient has, thereby helping clinicians determine with accuracy whether a patient needs an antimicrobial treatment and, if so, which one.57 For example, diagnostic tests can check whether an infection is caused by bacteria or by a virus.58 DHSC told us that it wanted to make sure that people who need antibiotics get them, but only those that they need, and that people who do not need antibiotics do not get them, but the diagnostic tests available are not yet adequate to allow clinicians to make that really clear distinction.59