Factors Related To Outpatient Antibiotic Drug Consumption In Turkey

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Turkey is currently a European leader in antibiotic consumption. To fight against increasing consumption, it is necessary to understand factors related to antibiotic drug consumption. To fill this gap in the literature, this study intends to probe factors related to outpatient antibacterial drug consumption in Turkey. Data from the National Antibacterial Drug Consumption Surveillance report and the Turkish Statistical Institute were assessed. The number of physicians; socio-economic development index (SEDI); endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic disease mortality; employment; education; and geographic region were used as factors related to outpatient antibacterial drug consumption. Euclidean distance measure and complete linkage methods were used to draw a heatmap. A hierarchical cluster analysis was performed to visualize factors related to outpatient antibacterial drug consumption. Additionally, 81 provinces of Turkey were used as a decision-making unit in the analysis. Sensitivity analysis of province group differences in terms of study variables were examined using independent sample “t” and Chi-square (“X2”) tests. Study results revealed a close link between education and outpatient antibiotic drug consumption in Turkey. In addition, 81 provinces were categorized into two groups representing rural and urban regions of Turkey. The differences in province group sensitivity results – according to the number of physicians (t=2.522, p˂0.05); SEDI (t=4.986, p˂0.05); endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases, mortality (t=3.317, p˂0.05); employment (t=1.684, p˂0.05); antibacterial drug consumption (t=6.470, p˂0.05); and education (t=3.544, p˂0.05) – were statistically significant. The study results highlight the need to raise awareness in Turkey regarding appropriate consumption of antibacterial drugs. Antibiotic awareness campaigns, consideration of increasing cost, communication among stakeholders, and strong sustainable use policies are essential to combat increasing antimicrobial resistance in Turkey.