Appropriateness of Surgical Antimicrobial Prophylaxis Practices in Australia

Key Points Question What are the current surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis prescribing practices in Australia, and what factors are associated with their appropriateness? Findings This quality improvement study of 9351 surgical episodes found high rates of inappropriate procedural and postprocedural antimicrobial use across various hospital, patient, and surgical factors. The most common reason for inappropriate procedural use was incorrect timing, while duration greater than 24 hours was the most common reason for inappropriate postprocedural use. Meaning These findings suggest that the identified hospital, patient, and surgical factors should be considered as targets for development of tailored interventions to ensure appropriateness of surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis prescriptions.