AMR Is Not Just Killing Patients, It Is Costing Families Their Livelihoods – WHO
Princess-Ekwi Ajide
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is no longer simply a problem of ineffective medicines; it is also pushing families into financial hardship as prolonged illness, hospital stays and long-term care strip people of their ability to work, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned.
Dr Jean-Pierre Nyemazi, Acting Director of the WHO AMR Department, said one million people die every year from drug-resistant bacterial infections, while families can be forced to abandon jobs to care for sick relatives.
He spoke during a press conference marking the European Parliament exhibition, “AMR: The Human Stories Behind a Silent Pandemic,” in Brussels.
The exhibition, running from 28 September to 2 October 2026, features personal accounts of people affected by AMR.
Nyemazi said the economic burden of AMR extends beyond healthcare bills, affecting productivity, food production and national economies.
“People stay longer in hospitals,” he said, adding that relatives sometimes have to leave their jobs to care for loved ones.
The human cost was illustrated by Rob Purdie, an AMR survivor and member of the WHO Task Force of AMR Survivors, who recounted how a delayed diagnosis of a fungal infection eventually progressed to meningitis.
Purdie said he spent about a quarter of a million dollars on hospital care and was unable to earn a living for about five years, leaving his family dependent on social safety nets.
Thirteen years later, he said, he still has limited savings and cannot retire.
Nyemazi said better diagnosis must come before indiscriminate antibiotic use, particularly in settings where patients bypass formal healthcare and obtain medicines directly from pharmacies.
He called for stronger primary healthcare, access to diagnostics, enforcement of prescription rules, public education and digital systems capable of tracking medicines dispensed by pharmacies.
He said the updated 10-year Global Action Plan on AMR adopted by WHO Member States in May places greater emphasis on prevention, governance, measurable targets and behavioural change across human, animal and environmental health.
“The tools exist and the evidence is there, but the cost of inaction is rising,” Nyemazi said.
The message from the briefing was clear: developing new antibiotics and antifungals alone will not solve AMR.
Existing medicines must also be protected through responsible use, accurate diagnosis, vaccination, infection prevention, better sanitation and coordinated action across sectors.
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