Keywords: antibiotics, children, general practice, infections, education, antibiotic resistance, antibiotic awareness week

"Childhood fever in out-of-hours general practice"

Fever is the most common reason for children to visit the general practitioner. It is usually caused by a harmless (viral) infection not necessitating any immediate further actions. However, many children with fever receive antibiotics. Out-of-hours general practices, which assess children increasingly frequently because both parents work during daytime, prescribe antibiotics even more often. This study was conducted among more than 25,000 children with fever visiting Dutch out-of-hours general practices. It shows that educating parents by providing them with an interactive brochure on fever and common symptoms of infection reduces the number of antibiotics prescribed at out-of-hours general practices. It also shows that after having received this type of education parents state they are less likely to revisit an out-of-hours general practice with the same symptoms. The brochure was developed in consultation with parents, doctors and nurses. It is a promising tool for combatting antibiotic resistance.