New American Hospital Association antimicrobial stewardship toolkit provides resources from multiple organizations.

Overuse of antibiotic agents has garnered national attention. Unnecessary use of antibiotics can cause serious side effectsdeven death due to antibiotic-resistant bacteriadand a host of public health concerns. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that approximately half of all prescriptions for antibiotic agents written in the United States are either unnecessary or used inappropriately. Ear infections, for example, are often overtreated with antibiotics when watchful waiting would suffice. Antibiotics are also often inappropriately used to treat viral conditions for which they have no effect. According to the CDC, “Hospitalbased programs dedicated to improving antibiotic use, commonly referred to as ‘Antibiotic Stewardship Programs (ASPs),’ can both optimize the treatment of infections and reduce adverse events associated with antibiotic use.” In “Appropriate Use of Medical Resources,” a white paper released in November 2013, the American Hospital Association’s Physician Leadership Forum identified 5 areas where hospitals, in partnership with their clinical staff and patients, should look to reduce nonbeneficial care (www.aha.org/appropriateuse). The first toolkit based on the report was released in April 2014 in collaboration with AABB on the topic of patient blood management. The second toolkit, on antimicrobial stewardship, which was developed in partnership with the Association for Professionals in