Such an effort would be immensely controversial, but the continuing increase in resistant organisms may warrant such controversial initiatives. There are other constructive ways to engage with pharmaceutical companies on the issue of appropriate promotion of antimicrobial agents. In either case, educational efforts aimed at patients on appropriate antimicrobial use are warranted. In most of the world, prescriptions are not required for purchasing antimicrobials. Antimicrobials are dispensed either by untrained practitioners, or are purchased and self administered without any medical advice.
Gastrointestinal symptoms are a common reason for use of antimicrobials without prescription.
Many entrenched interests oppose limiting antimicrobial use to those with prescriptions from licensed medical practitioners. Additionally, in many developing countries there may be too few medical practitioners to provide adequate access for all persons to prescriptions. Nonetheless, when the major motive behind prescribing or selling drugs is profit, the ability to ever achieve prudent use seems problematic. Medical societies need to support efforts to limit the inappropriate use of antimicrobials by non-qualified pharmacies. Research Compliance is a major issue with appropriate use.