Antimicrobial resistance is one of the main threats to global public health. Reducing the unnecessary use of antibiotics is a priority for health systems, especially in primary care and pediatrics. In this scenario, communication between health care professionals and families plays a fundamental role in supporting evidence-based clinical decisions and promoting more appropriate use of these treatments.
A study published in the journal BMC Primary Care, with Dr. Lucía Arias-Alonso, a researcher at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and a professional at the Sant Roc Primary Care Center of the Institut Català de la Salut, as first author, and Dr. Pablo Alonso-Coello, a researcher at the Sant Pau Research Institute (IR Sant Pau), the Iberoamerican Cochrane Center and CIBERESP, as senior author, has received the 2025 Award for Best Research Article in Communication granted by the Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine (semFYC). The work, entitled Development and assessment of an online communication skills course to optimise antibiotic prescribing for children in primary care, describes the development and evaluation of an online communication skills course designed to help health care professionals optimize antibiotic prescribing in children.
Respiratory infections are one of the most frequent reasons for consultation in childhood and, in many cases, are caused by viruses, meaning antibiotics are not effective. However, diagnostic uncertainty, workload pressure, or families’ expectations may lead to these medicines being prescribed when they are not needed. “Optimizing antibiotic use requires complementary interventions. This work shows that clinical communication can play an important role within strategies aimed at reducing unnecessary prescriptions and helping combat antimicrobial resistance,” says Dr. Lucía Arias-Alonso.
The course was designed based on the available scientific evidence, the experience of experts in primary care and clinical communication, and the participation of health care professionals during the different stages of development. In total, 34 experts contributed to the creation and validation of the tool, which was ultimately structured into 4 training modules and included 27 videos based on everyday clinical situations.
The training was aimed at pediatricians, pediatric nurses, and community pharmacists, three profiles especially involved in the care of childhood respiratory infections. The content included aspects such as exploring families’ concerns, managing expectations about treatment, explaining the natural course of respiratory infections, and communicating clinical uncertainty. The aim was to provide practical tools to help professionals clearly explain when an antibiotic was not necessary and what alternatives were available for symptom management.
“Decisions about antibiotic use do not depend solely on the clinical diagnosis. The way professionals explain the situation, respond to families’ concerns, and manage their expectations also influences the outcome of the consultation. That is why we wanted to develop a specific tool to strengthen these skills,” explains Dr. Lucía Arias-Alonso. “We wanted to develop a useful and accessible tool that responded to situations professionals face every day in consultation. The positive reception it received shows that there is interest in strengthening these skills and that communication can become an ally in promoting more appropriate antibiotic use,” she adds.
The evaluation conducted during the development of the program showed a high level of acceptance among participants. Most of the aspects analyzed received scores equal to or higher than 4 out of 5, while the videos were the highest-rated resource, with an average score of 4.81 out of 5. In addition, 93% of participants expressed interest in completing the entire training, reflecting the tool’s positive reception among professionals. According to the authors, these results support the potential of this type of intervention to improve quality of care and promote prescribing that is more closely aligned with scientific evidence.
The research was part of the OptimAP project, a multicenter initiative aimed at improving antibiotic use in primary care through evidence-based interventions. The project was initially funded by La Marató de TV3 and later received funding from the Health Technology Development (DTS) call of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III to advance the development, implementation, and evaluation of tools aimed at optimizing antibiotic prescribing. Within this framework, the development and validation of the course represented a key preliminary step for subsequently assessing its impact on clinical practice and prescribing patterns.
Antimicrobial resistance is responsible for a growing number of infections that are difficult to treat and represents an increasingly significant challenge for health systems. For this reason, optimizing antibiotic use has become an international priority that requires action at different levels, from research and training to everyday clinical practice.
“Antimicrobial resistance is a complex problem that requires action on multiple fronts. OptimAP seeks to provide practical, evidence-based solutions to support professionals in everyday decision-making. This work shows that it is possible to develop training tools that are well accepted by users and have the potential to improve the quality of prescribing,” says Dr. Pablo Alonso Coello.
The article was recognized with the 2025 Award for Best Research Article in Communication during the 35th semFYC Congress on Communication and Health, held in Valladolid. The award highlights the relevance of clinical communication as a tool to improve health care and address some of the most important challenges in current clinical practice.
“This award is a recognition of the work carried out by the entire team and reinforces the importance of integrating communication skills into clinical practice. We often talk about antibiotics from a pharmacological perspective, but the way we explain our decisions also has a direct impact on their appropriate use,” concludes Dr. Arias-Alonso.
Arias-Alonso L, Barragán-Brun N, Elizondo-Alzola U, Boldu-Minguell A, Rocha-Calderón CA, Niño-de-Guzmán E, Santandreu FM, Quesada-Carrasco F, Ricci-Cabello I, Gorrotxategi-Gorrotxategi PJ, de la Poza-Abad M, Mas-Dalmau G, Gibert-Agulló A, González-Lama J, Alonso-Coello P. Development and assessment of an online communication skills course to optimise antibiotic prescribing for children in primary care. BMC Primary Care. 2025;26:278. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-025-02919-6.
