The drive-AMS project has officially concluded its mission with a high-level meeting held in Brussels from 16 to 18 October. Consortium members as well as other AMR experts, policymakers, and public health officials from across Europe gathered to review the project’s achievements and lessons learned, but also to discuss possibilities to broaden the impact of drive-AMS and to make its legacy sustainable.

With the drive-AMS project coming to an end, it’s time to look back and evaluate, but also to look toward the future. In this interview article, our Country Leads from Romania, Lithuania, Greece and Portugal reflect on the project’s impact and achievements, as well as on the challenges that accompanied the journey. Although some difficulties were shared across countries, others were specific to national contexts. What united the Country Leads, however, was a shared commitment to innovation and collaboration, and, most importantly, a unanimous consensus about the project’s impact and success.

After three intense years of excellent collaboration, the drive-AMS project has officially come to an end. Time for project coordinators Erika Vlieghe and Jeroen Schouten to look back on the achievements and lessons learned.

At the end of the EU-4H financed phase of drive-AMS, Unidade Local de Saúde São João, the Portuguese partner of the project, organized a two-days meeting gathering all the sixteen Portuguese Local Health Units aboard the program. In addition to these sixteen healthcare institutions, the Society of Intensive Care Medicine, the Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, the Portuguese Hospital Infection Association, the Portuguese Hospital Administrators Association and the Portuguese Drug Agency (Infarmed) were also represented.

In this latest edition of our AMS expert interview series, we speak with Esmée Ruizendaal, a clinical microbiologist at Radboud University Medical Center in The Netherlands, about her journey into global health, her upcoming SPICE* mission in Tanzania, and the value of collaborative mentorship in antimicrobial stewardship (AMS).

As the drive-AMS project reaches its conclusion, we’re thrilled to invite you to a special Networking Event on 16 October 2025, hosted at the Thon Hotel EU in Brussels. This event is part of the three-day final meeting of the drive-AMS initiative and will bring together key voices in antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) from across Europe.

في 20 و21 أكتوبر/تشرين الأول، ستجتمع جميع المؤسسات البرتغالية المشاركة في اجتماع طويل الأمد لبرنامج AMS-PT، لمناقشة أهمية البرنامج ومستقبله في البرتغال.

We are delighted to announce that on 15 September, Ines Pauwels will publicly defend her PhD thesis titled: “Global antimicrobial prescribing patterns and the initiation of stewardship activities in hospitals within the Global-PPS network”

From 17 to 19 June 2025, Trinidad and Tobago’s capital Port of Spain became the hub of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) and infection prevention and control (IPC) education, as healthcare professionals from across the Caribbean gathered for the first-ever drive-AMS Masterclass in the region.

The drive-AMS team recently had the privilege of conducting a highly interactive and impactful course in Nairobi, Kenya, focused on advancing antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) practices. Organized in collaboration with The International Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance Solutions (ICARS), ReAct Africa Network, Radboudumc, Aga Khan University Hospital Nairobi and other key partners, the course brought together dedicated teams from eight Kenyan centers and one Somalian center, all eager to strengthen their AMS initiatives.

Antimicrobial resistance knows no borders, and neither does drive-AMS. Following its successful implementation in Greece, Portugal, Romania and Lithuania, the drive-AMS approach is now taking root in Cyprus. With the enthusiastic leadership of Dr. Elisavet Constantinou, Dr. Markella Marcou and Dr. Linos Hadjihannas, the country has taken major steps in implementing antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) at the hospital level. In a first major milestone, eight newly established AMS teams were trained in February 2025 as part of a tailor-made drive-AMS training. In this interview, Dr. Marcou and Dr. Hadjihannas reflect on their motivation, the AMR situation in Cyprus, and their expectations for the future.

The SPICE initiative (Specialized Program for Infectious Disease Care Everywhere) has now expanded its expert-led support to Greece. This effort is part of the broader drive-AMS project and aims to empower hospitals in partner countries with tailored, expert-backed AMS consultation services.

On May 21st, ULS São João brought together leaders from 16 Portuguese ULS (Local Health Units) for the national leadership meeting of the drive-AMS program—a project focused on improving antimicrobial prescribing practices through behavioral change strategies.

We’re excited to announce the Final Consortium Meeting of the drive-AMS project, taking place from 16–18 October 2025 in Brussels. This three-day event will gather partners, experts, and stakeholders from across Europe to reflect on the achievements of drive-AMS in strengthening antimicrobial stewardship and to shape the future of post-project collaboration.

في مؤتمر ESCMID العالمي لعام 2025 (فيينا، 11-15 أبريل/نيسان)، قدم اتحاد حملة-AMS النتائج الرئيسية لمشروعه المبتكر للإشراف على مضادات الميكروبات على مستوى الاتحاد الأوروبي. وقد عرض الملصق الذي حمل عنوان “تنفيذ الإشراف على مضادات الميكروبات في المستشفيات في أوروبا باستخدام نهج تغيير السلوك القائم على البيانات”، نتائج ملهمة من أول عامين من المشروع.

From 13 to 15 February, a group of 38 healthcare professionals from eight hospitals across Cyprus gathered in Nicosia for an intensive three-day learning experience: the drive-AMS Antimicrobial Stewardship course. Hosted by the Cyprus Ministry of Health and supported by EU-JAMRAI, this event brought the innovative drive-AMS methodology to the Mediterranean, equipping Cypriot hospitals with the knowledge and tools to enhance antimicrobial stewardship.

تشكل مقاومة مضادات الميكروبات (AMR) تحدياً كبيراً للصحة العامة، لا سيما في مرافق الرعاية طويلة الأمد (LTCFs) حيث يكون كبار السن الضعفاء معرضين بشدة للعدوى. ويساهم الاستخدام المفرط وغير المناسب للمضادات الحيوية، خاصةً في حالات عدوى المسالك البولية المشتبه بها، في ظهور بكتيريا متعددة المقاومة مما يهدد سلامة المرضى.

The second drive-AMS country course in Lithuania took place from 29 January to 1 February, bringing together 40 participants, including teams from four new hospitals and one new team from the University Hospital Pediatric Division. This course provided a vital platform for expanding AMS initiatives in Lithuania. Among the attendees was Eglė Karinauskė, an inspiring clinical pharmacologist dedicated to rational antibiotic prescribing. Known as the ‘AMR girl’ among her colleagues, Eglė is a passionate advocate for AMS, and in this interview, she shares her insights, experiences, and the impact of drive-AMS on her work.

STOP-Hospital Infection is a quality improvement program developed by the Portuguese Health Priority Program on Prevention of Infection and Antimicrobial Resistance, seeded in the Directorate General of Health, in partnership with the Gulbenkian Foundation and with the support of the Institute of Healthcare Improvement.

From January 29 -31, the second drive-AMS Masterclass for Rwandan hospitals took place in Kigali, bringing together teams from across the country for an intensive three-day training.

The third edition of the Portuguese drive-AMS training course recently took place, promoting strategies to support the prescription of antibiotics in eight national hospitals. It’s in line with the objective of the drive-AMS project to create measures in partner hospitals to combat antimicrobial resistance, through promoting behavioural change in prescribing doctors.

تعد مقاومة مضادات الميكروبات (AMR) أحد أكثر التحديات الصحية إلحاحًا في عصرنا الحالي، وتهدد بتقويض عقود من التقدم الطبي. واستجابةً لذلك، جمع فريق القيادة-AMS في المركز الطبي بجامعة رادبود، بالتعاون الوثيق مع شركة بيوميريو، خبرته الواسعة في دليل شامل بعنوان "الإشراف على مضادات الميكروبات: دليل عملي للتنفيذ في المستشفيات."

The global fight against Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) took center stage on 26 September 2024, at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on AMR (UN Headquarters, New York, USA). This silent pandemic brought world leaders together for the second time to confront AMR and laid out a roadmap of political commitments.

drive-AMS and EU-JAMRAI2, the second phase of the European Joint Action on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) and Healthcare-Associated Infections, are aligning their efforts, recognizing that both initiatives share crucial goals. EU-JAMRAI2 is dedicated to assisting EU Member States in implementing targeted actions against AMR, with the ultimate goal of safeguarding public health on the continent.

As part of drive-AMS, the team at Radboud University Medical Center in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, is expanding their SPICE Expert Registry to Greece, Lithuania, Romania and Portugal. SPICE stands for Specialized Programme for Infectious Disease Care Everywhere

From 18 to 24 November, join us and the global community in the WHO World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW). This annual campaign raises awareness about AMR and promotes best practices to reduce the emergence and spread of drug-resistant infections.

The drive-AMS methodology has successfully expanded beyond Europe, reaching both Africa and Asia. After having been implemented in Tanzania, drive-AMS’s distinctive approach, which combines antimicrobial use measurement, implementation support, and behavioural change, is now also active in Indonesia.

Dr. Birutė Zablockienė is part of the core drive-AMS team implementing antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) in Lithuania. In this interview, she shares insights into her work on combating antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and the challenges her team faces in ensuring appropriate antimicrobial use across multiple hospital departments.

In this interview, Professor Emmanuel Roilides, the country lead for the drive-AMS project in Greece, discusses his commitment to combating antimicrobial resistance. He shares the significant progress made by the Greek drive-AMS network in promoting antibiotic stewardship across hospitals, highlighting the challenges and successes encountered along the way. Professor Roilides also outlines the future goals of expanding the network and gaining broader state recognition to enhance the fight against resistant infections.

نحن فخورون بأن نعلن أنه قد تم تسليط الضوء على برنامج Drive-AMS في موجز السياسات الذي أصدره مؤخرًا المرصد الأوروبي للنظم والسياسات الصحية، تحت قسم “تعزيز تنفيذ استراتيجيات فعالة لمكافحة مقاومة مضادات الميكروبات”.”

In this interview, Mihaela Lupse, professor in infectious diseases and lead of the Romanian drive-AMS network, sheds light on the situation in her country. She elaborates on the ongoing efforts in fighting AMR and establishing the project in Romania.

In this interview, Dr. Raquel Duro, member of the Portuguese drive-AMS team, elaborates on her role within the project, the AMS interventions in her hospital and how AMR has affected patients.

The second part of the course dedicated to antimicrobial stewardship, integrated into the European drive-AMS project, recently took place.

It’s the end of our drive-AMS in-country trainings! From 15 until 18 May, the final course took place in Birštonas, Lithuania, organised by dr. Rolanda Valinteliene from the Institute of Hygiene in Vilnius and her team. The four days included presentations and workshops providing deeper insights into antimicrobial stewardship: basic requirements, objectives, prescribing patterns in Europe, quantity & quality of antimicrobial use, determinants & barriers, behavioural change and more.

Dr. Francisco Almeida from the Infection Prevention and Control and Antimicrobial Resistance Unit (UPCIRA) of São João Hospital, in Porto, Portugal, was awarded with the first prize of the AMS Certificate Programme 2022-2024 from ESCMID. He received the award for a project within the scope of drive-AMS, an antimicrobial stewardship project, with European funding, coordinated in Portugal by São João Hospital and involving 7 more national health units.

From 18 to 21 March, the Romanian drive-AMS team reached a critical milestone as it organized its own in-country training course. Under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Mihaele Lupse, representatives from 8 Romanian hospitals assembled in Cluj for four days of presentations and discussions on all aspects of effective stewardship programs to optimize antibiotic use.

The European drive-AMS project, which São João leads in Portugal, was selected to integrate the 1st phase of the Sustainable Health Pact (PaSSus) 2030, within the scope of the National Health Plan 2030 (PNS), recently launched and promoted by the portuguese General Directorate for the Health (DGS).

In this insightful interview, Dr. Rolanda Valinteliene, Head of the Public Health Technology Centre at the Institute of Hygiene in Vilnius, shares her experiences and challenges in leading efforts against antimicrobial resistance in Lithuania.

In this interview Roxana Dobrota, a member of the Romanian drive-AMS team, shares her insights into her role as clinical pharmacist, the situation around AMR in her country and how this is handled in her hospital.

Another successful in-country training! The Greek team, led by Prof. Dr. Emmanuel Roilides from the General Hospital of Thessaloniki, organised their drive-AMS course from 22 to 24 February. Around 40 participants from 8 different hospitals took part in the training, including infectious diseases specialists, pharmacists, nurses, microbiologists and paediatricians.

Meet Ana Reis, the health psychologist who joined the Portuguese drive-AMS team. Ana elaborates on her approach to behavioural change, a key pillar of effective antimicrobial stewardship programmes.

From 24 to 26 January 2024, Portugal hosted the first of four in-country trainings on the implementation of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) in hospitals.This successful 3-days course was organised by Dr. José Artur Paiva from the São João University Hospital and 14 faculty members from Portugal, Belgium and the Netherlands. Central throughout this training was inserting implementation science in hospital AMS programs.

Global-PPS is organising an online training on Thursday 18 January, which will be focussed on their inpatient methodology.

One year ago, the drive-AMS project was established. In this brief overview, we present the most significant milestones that have been reached in the course of its first year.