Learn Strategies for Communicating With Patients, Families, and Colleagues About Antibiotic Prescribing in Telemedicine

For information on how the materials below can be integrated into your practice’s efforts to improve antibiotic use, see the Implementation Guide for Improving Antibiotic Use in Telemedicine (PDF, 380 KB).

Improving antibiotic use is a patient safety issue. All members of a telemedicine practice should be encouraged to understand both the benefits and risks of antibiotic use and be engaged in reducing harm associated with antibiotic use. Reducing harm often requires a change in thinking and behavior.

In telemedicine, working with other clinicians and practice staff to reach consensus on how to manage antibiotic prescribing can help create a standard approach to prescribing. Further, communication around antibiotic use with patients and their families is essential to improve antibiotic use. The presentations and tools below are pertinent to clinicians, pharmacists, practice staff, practice managers, practice leadership, and members of antibiotic stewardship teams.

Presentations

These presentations are designed to improve communication and consensus around antibiotic prescribing. 

Tools

These tools are designed to assist the practice in creating a culture that values appropriate antibiotic prescribing and to support communication with patients and their families around antibiotic use.

• The Commitment Poster can be signed by clinicians and staff, or include a picture of clinicians and staff, and shared virtually (e.g., as a screensaver, virtual background, in a virtual waiting room) to let your patients know that your practice is committed to prescribing antibiotics only when necessary.
• The Communicating with Patients Guide summarizes approaches to improve communication with patients about antibiotics.
• The Communicating with Your Clinician Patient Handout can be provided to patients and families to explain why antibiotics are not always needed.
• The Sample Responses to Patient Portal Messages can be used by clinicians to respond to messages received through the patient portal.
• The Handouts for Patients and Families can be provided electronically or printed for patients and their families to provide information about common infections treated over telemedicine.