Using Electronic Pharmacy Dispensing Data for Surveillance of Outpatient Antibiotic Consumption and Monitoring of Antibiotic Prescribing Practices at District and Provincial Hospitals in the South African Public Sector

The primary aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of using electronic pharmacy dispensing data extracted from RxSolution® for the surveillance of outpatient (ambulatory) antibiotic consumption and monitor antibiotic prescribing practices at district and provincial hospitals in public health facilities in North West Province, South Africa, between April 2013 and March 2015. This was an exploratory project to develop hypotheses on the volume of antibiotics used and prescribing patterns.