Clinician Perspective on the Latest SSTI Antibiotics

Although the development of antibiotics overall has its challenges including the lack of new therapies getting approved, Bruce M. Jones, PharmD, FIDSA, BCPS, infectious diseases clinical pharmacy specialist at St. Joseph's/Candler Health System in Savannah, GA, is optimistic about the newer antibiotics when it comes to treatment for skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs).

Jones says the challenges for him in this treatment space include provider education and resources as well as easier access to patients.

“For me, a lot of what we see with these agents is coming from the outpatient side, whether it is outpatient infusion, specialty pharmacy, so reimbursement and a lot of the financials that come with these, and access to these drugs are definitely issues,” Jones stated. “It’s something that makes them harder to use because now you are talking more about a process than letting me hand you a prescription and you can go down the street and fill it.”

He would like to see more resources and education around these important antibiotics.
   
Contagion is running a short series of video interviews to discuss SSTIs, and Jones sat down in a far-ranging interview to discuss criteria and decisions around whether SSTIs should be treated as inpatient or outpatient, what his institution is experiencing, and his perspective on the currently approved antibiotics.

In this episode, Jones provides his perspective on antibiotics for SSTI treatment, insights on patient profiles and who might be the best candidates for which therapy, and how his institution works to decrease length-of-stays for inpatients as they work to transition patients to outpatient treatment more efficiently.