Continuing Medical Education Credits
Now Available for the Workshop on
Antimicrobial Stewardship and the
Workshop on Infection Control.
Hands-on Session: Reimagining Resistance
One of the many reasons for the lack of progress in dealing with the phenomenon of ‘resistance’ seems to be the flawed ‘war metaphor’ which reflects the dominant paradigm shaping our relationship to the microbial world. Experience in tackling infectious diseases is showing that antibiotics are no longer the ‘magic bullets’ they were once conceived to be while bacteria are also not the ‘enemy’ to be eliminated through any means whatsoever. We need accurate knowledge of and actions to prevent and treat the relatively few pathogenic threats rather than a general fear of all microbes.
Chief among the insights that new research in microbiology is providing is the extent to which human life is closely intertwined with that of the microbial world and the complex mechanisms by which the latter operates. Mechanisms, one may add, that are still poorly understood and which hold the key to finding ways by which the human species to a greater extent can peacefully co-exist with the great diversity and volume of microorganisms that populate our planet.
It is a crisis in the world of medicine that can also be converted into an opportunity to ask new questions, often very basic and simple ones. Questions that delve into not just science but also art, history, culture and their link with politics of medicine, microbial ecology and human health.
The Microbes and Metaphors process initiated by ReAct seeks to do precisely that by bringing together artists, microbiologists, clinicians and social activists for a cross-sectoral exploration of the still mysterious microbe-human-health equation. This underlying process is stimulating interesting spin off processes and products for creative health promotion.
AV Exhibits:
Microbes and Metaphors Project: Samples of paintings and other art work by artists around the world who are trying to make the invisible world of microbes visible through their work. From installations by a UK artist that involves people in discussing normal flora to overcome the ‘yuk’ factor to paintings by a Thai and an Australian artist that try to get into a dialogue with all of nature.
Artist/Pharmacist collaboration in Thailand: Paintings by Thai pharmacists expressing their imagination of the phenomenon of medicines, antibiotics and /or resistance means for humankind, the environment and the microbial world.
Foto Resistencia: An edu-communication project based on photography where primary health care professionals were trained about antibiotic resistance, its social determinants, the transcendental role of physicians as educators, community participation and social awareness as essential elements in public health and photography as a communicational tool. They documented the different aspects of ABR in their health centers and /or communities. The pictures were exhibited in a pedagogical way in public spaces in Ecuador, organized around four main topics: resistant infections, immediate causes, underlying causes, and holistic conception of health.
Satya Sivaraman, Communication Adviser, ReAct – Action on Antibiotic Resistance
Kléver Calle, Communication Coordinator, ReAct Latin America
Diana Andrade, ReAct Latin America
Dr Niyada Kiatying-Angsulee, Director, Social Research Institute, and Manager, Drug System Monitor and Development Program, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok
