22/11/2025
Trail mix > antibiotic resistance.
“Sabi kasi nang kapitbahay namin”
Last week I saw a patient that was admitted with a leg wound and a fever that had been worsening for weeks. She had diabetes and had already tried multiple antibiotics at home. Her daughter brought a pouch of mixed tablets: leftovers from an old prescription, a few from a neighbor, and one bought from pharmacies that wrongfully dispense antibiotics without a need for prescriptions, because it has been the practice of her family for years.
“Para daw mabilis gumaling sabi kasi nang kapitbahay namin.”
Cultures eventually came back showing MRSA, resistant to almost everything, her wound was not getting better.
Her daughter asked, “Doc, meron pa po bang mas malakas antibiotic ang kailangan?”
I explained that the remaining options were effective, but they were medicines usually reserved for severe, resistant infections, and they came with a cost most families aren’t prepared for.
As to which the patient replied,
“Sana pala nagpa-check up na lang kami agad.”
No blaming. No drama. Just a reminder that Antibiotic resisrance is real and a reminder of how easily things can escalate when antibiotics are used without proper guidance.
