Determination of knowledge levels and attitudes of clinician veterinarians working in Thrace region towards antibiotic use

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has become a global problem due to widespread antimicrobial use in human and veterinary medicine. AMR affects health systems by leading to prolonged and severe illnesses, high mortality rates, and treatment failures caused by resistant microorganisms. As antibiotics are the most widely used drugs in veterinary medicine, veterinarians' knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding antibiotic use are crucial in combating AMR. In this cross-sectional study, an online questionnaire of 20 questions was administered to clinician veterinarians and members of the Trakya Chamber of Veterinarians and 60 participants answered the questionnaire. In the current survey, 98 % of veterinarians agree that AMR is an important public health problem and emphasize that focusing on rational antibiotic use in veterinary medicine is a critical area to slow the development of AMR. Only 10 % of the respondents stated that they take into account antibiotic requests from patient owners, 68.3 % stated that they rarely use off-label drugs and 16.7 % stated that they often use them. Of those respondents, 16.7 % stated that they routinely perform antibiograms. Regarding education, 41.7 % of veterinarians had received training on rational antibiotic use. When asked about their preferred type of training, 56.7 % favored online training, while 35 % preferred face-to-face sessions. The results indicate that veterinarians play a significant role in combating AMR and that more awareness and education are needed in this field.