7. A Book Review by Angela Stoyanovitch on Superbugs, An Arms Race Against Bacteria

This week's episode discusses the crux of the legal drug industry with an example of a growing global issue, antimicrobial resistance. This is a casual book review of the book, Superbugs, An Arms Race Against Bacteria, written by William Hall, Anthony McDonnell and Jim O'Neill published by Harvard University Press, copyright 2018. After being gifted the book, host, Angela Stoyanovitch, falls in love with the topic of antibiotics, a category type of legal drugs. According to the book, Superbugs, approximately 1.5 million people die every year already as a result of antimicrobial resistance. The antibiotic crisis is still developing today.  Is it possible that many of us have abused antibiotics at some point? Are the right diagnostic tests in place within our health care provider systems? What's happening worldwide with resistant strains of bacteria? Do we even know what bacterial strains we are handling or up against as the bacteria evolves so rapidly? What responsibility do we have as individuals? What role does or should our governments play? What about the drug development industry or pharmaceutical companies? In order to understand this issue more fully, perhaps a systems thinking approach should be taken (a reference from a book titled, Thinking in Systems: A Primer, written by Donella Meadows.) As with any drug development topic, this one is complex but applicable to our everyday lives.  Listen in to learn more about Superbugs and potential solutions to this silent killer that include simple human behavioral changes such as hand washing up to a massive cry for global government, pharmaceutical and academic collaboration and funding for new legal drugs, etc.  This episode of Legal Drugs Podcast edited by Margaret Beveridge.