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The Australian Centre for Disease Control (CDC) today released the Sixth Australian report on antimicrobial use and resistance in human health (AURA report). It is the first AURA report authored by the CDC and draws together national data from hospitals, residential aged care and the wider community between 2022 and 2024.
The AURA report shows Australia supplied 23.2 million antibiotic prescriptions under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme in 2024, a 4.8% increase on the previous year – while reports of critical antibiotic resistance rose by 25.2% over the same period.
The report notes that while overall antibiotic use remains lower than a decade ago, how antibiotics are used – and for how long – continues to drive resistance, with clear pressure points across the health system.
Key findings include:
- 37.1% of the Australian population had at least one antimicrobial dispensed in the community under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
- only 45.0% of antibiotics given after surgery were assessed as appropriate
- 34.7% of antibiotics prescribed to older Australians in residential aged care were used for prolonged periods (longer than 6 months).
These patterns matter. Antimicrobial resistance is in Australia and is affecting people and health systems now. It makes infections harder to treat, increases the risk of complications, and limits the effectiveness of medicines we all rely on for routine care, surgery and cancer treatment.
The AURA report reinforces the importance of appropriate, evidence-based prescribing and ongoing stewardship across all care settings to protect the effectiveness of critical antimicrobials.
Antimicrobial resistance affects everyone. To reduce the development and spread of infection, and the need for antimicrobials:
- use antibiotics only when needed – and exactly as prescribed
- practice good hand hygiene and wound care
- stay up-to-date with vaccinations.
Australia’s antimicrobial resistance surveillance relies on contributions from hospitals, laboratories, aged care, general practice, community health services and national systems. The AURA report highlights how vital this collective effort is. The insights it provides are possible because thousands of professionals across the health system generate, interpret and share high quality data every day.
Read the full AURA report on the Antimicrobial Resistance website.