In an increasingly competitive context, the creation of a national infrastructure to better structure and interconnect existing research and monitoring networks (clinical, epidemiological, public health, veterinary and environmental) is essential to coordinate forces and accelerate research into antibiotic resistance.
To raise France’s profile in this field, it is important to develop and evaluate new diagnostic tools, therapeutic strategies and interventions. To achieve these objectives, the infrastructure will rely on:
- The creation of a relational database listing all the players and centers/departments involved in antibiotic resistance research (clinical departments, laboratories, etc.) and their skills (equipment, human resources, etc.). The aim is to facilitate communication and the transmission of information, collaboration between different sectors, data and information sharing, the launch of pilot studies and the optimization of clinical trials or interventional studies (e.g. infection prevention and control, proper use of antibiotics).
- Pooling of knowledge, skills and resources by offering: (i) assistance with project design, coordination and implementation; (ii) development of common tools: quality procedures, communication tools.
- Enhancing the skills of network members by organizing training courses, seminars and conferences.
At the same time, we propose to bring together all those involved in the epidemiological surveillance of antibiotic resistance and antibiotic therapy (and other data, particularly clinical) within a national observatory, working with agencies and networks such as Santé publique France and RESAPATH, which cover human and animal surveillance, and by associating environmental surveillance (hitherto little or not covered at all) to generate the most exhaustive epidemiological data possible, measuring more specifically the real impact and cost of antibiotic resistance.
Eventually, the network and observatory should become an essential platform and a single, easy point of contact for launching new national and international projects, under optimum conditions of quality and efficiency.