Antimicrobial stewardship and drug formulary restrictions during COVID-19: what is restricted and who decides?

Alfredo J Mena Lora; Rodrigo Burgos; Scott Borgetti; Lelia H Chaisson; Susan C Bleasdale

doi:10.1017/ash.2023.205

Antimicrobial stewardship and drug formulary restrictions during COVID-19: what is restricted and who decides?

Antimicrob Steward Healthc Epidemiol. 2023 Jun 30;3(1):e116. doi: 10.1017/ash.2023.205. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Alfredo J Mena Lora¹, Rodrigo Burgos¹, Scott Borgetti¹, Lelia H Chaisson¹, Susan C Bleasdale¹

Affiliation

¹ University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.

Abstract

COVID-19 therapies were challenging to deploy due to evolving literature and conflicting guidelines. Antimicrobial stewardship can help optimize drug use. We conducted a survey to understand the role of stewardship and formulary restrictions during the pandemic. Restrictions for COVID-19 therapies were common and approval by infectious disease physicians often required.

Keywords: COVID-19; antimicrobial stewardship; formulary restrictions.