Comparing High Antibiotic Prescribers with Peers Lowered Prescribing Rates in the U.K.

A recent U.S. study showed that informing physicians about their antibiotic prescribing behavior compared with that of “top performers” in appropriate antibiotic prescribing lowered inappropriate antibiotic use significantly (NEJM JW Gen Med Mar 1 2016 and JAMA 2016; 315:562). Now, researchers in the U.K. have assessed a different approach to peer feedback in a randomized trial that involved 1581 general practices whose antibiotic prescribing rates were in the top 20% for their area. General practitioners (GPs) in intervention practices received letters from England's Chief Medical Officer in which they were told they prescribed more antibiotics than 80% of practices in their local area, and they were offered strategies for reducing prescri…