TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Four Australian scientists show relation of bacteria resistance to corruption level and poor governance in 28 European countries. The research was published on journal PLOS ONE, March 18.

“We found poor governance and higher levels of corruption are associated with higher levels of antibiotic resistance,” said Peter Collignon, the lead researcher from The Australian National University (ANU) School of Medicine, as quoted by the official site of ANU.

Co-author Associate Professor Sanjaya Senanayake said countries with higher levels of corruption often had less rigorous and less transparent processes, with less effective controls over areas pertinent to antibiotic resistance.

“These include factors that affect antibiotic usage and the ways antibiotic-resistant bacteria spread via water, foods and poor infection control,” Associate Professor Senanayake said.

“In countries with greater corruption, antibiotic usage may also be much higher than what is recorded.”

“If governance and control of corruption can be improved, this can be an important factor in reversing high levels of antibiotic resistance.”

Antimicrobial resistance is one of the biggest hurdle in the modern medical world. The World Health Organization describes it as a looming crisis in which common and treatable infections are becoming life threatening.

SCIENCEDAILY | BBC | JOURNALS.PLOS.ORG | AHMAD NURHASYIM