Overuse of Antibiotics

[Christine]

This post is just a vent I guess.

I thought the medical community was getting better about throwing antibiotics at everything. If you were to work in my office, you would never know that's the case.

Including myself, there are six people working in my little area. Since October, there are three of them that have been routinely sick. By sick, I mean, they get cold after cold after cold. Each and every time, within a day or two of getting the cold, they leave work early and go to the doctor. Each and every time, they have all been put on Z-Packs. They have different doctors. Two of them are on their third round of antibiotics since the Fall. And no, they don't have chronic infections.

They don't get any better any faster and they have nothing more than colds as, for the most part, they stay at work the whole time and I can hear/see their symptoms.

My doctor's office doesn't give anything out if you have cold symptoms UNLESS it's been going on for 2 weeks and there is no sign of improvement.

My one coworker just got the sniffles on Friday, started coughing on Saturday, and was "in urgent care" last night. They did a chest x-ray which was all clear but gave her the Z-Pack anyway.

What is up with all that? It just bugs me because of all the antibiotic resistant illnesses we have but some of the medical community (as well as some patients) seem to be reckless about it.

 

[Liberty Belle]

Well I don't know your co-workers or their conditions, but I know if my mom gets a cold with a cough, she has to go on antibiotics immediately because of her COPD. Also, almost everytime I get a cold, I need antibiotics because it inevitably turns into a sinus infection. But, I never go to the doctor with just a cold. I wait a few days and then when I can tell it's a sinus infection, I'll go.

 

[tlbwriter]

What is up with all that? It just bugs me because of all the antibiotic resistant illnesses we have but some of the medical community (as well as some patients) seem to be reckless about it.

I agree. I was sniffling and coughing once during my annual GYN visit and my doctor said "Do you want an antibiotic for that cold?" Um, no, thank you.

 

[Christine]

Well I don't know your co-workers or their conditions, but I know if my mom gets a cold with a cough, she has to go on antibiotics immediately because of her COPD.

There's *always* an exception.

I will tell you that one of the ladies here has been coughing for well over a year. Since my son has fairly significant asthma and I know what happens when he gets a cold, I finally mentioned to her that I thought she might have asthma (I really think she might have COPD but I'm not going there with her). Every time she gets a cold, it all goes to heck and the coughing gets worse but it never goes away. I think if she could just get her pulmonary function treated, she'd be a lot better off. Despite all that, the antibiotics don't seem to help any of them.