For another 20 years or so it seemed as though the problem of resistant germs was no problem, because a new generation of antibiotics would take care of them. But now that shelf is almost empty. The development of new antibiotics has not kept up with the development of antibiotic resistance. What occurred was that many physicians saw antibiotics as a quick fix for many patients, and patients liked to get a prescription for one. But viruses cause flu and the common cold, not bacteria.
Antibiotics do nothing to counter a viral infection.
Doctors, of course, know that. If the worst of the illness is over in a few days, the antibiotic may get the credit, when in fact it had no effect on the virus that caused the illness. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have estimated that a third of the 150 million outpatient prescriptions written were unnecessary. Hospitals, too, use antibiotics in ways being called inappropriate. Lieberman cites a Health Care Financing Administration study that found 63 percent of vancomycin orders were inconsistent with CDC guidelines.