Researchers and health experts have called for greater efforts to take scientific findings on antimicrobial resistance beyond university lecture halls and laboratories, warning that research will have limited impact if the knowledge does not reach healthcare workers, farmers, policymakers and the wider public.

A microbiologist at the University of Ibadan (UI), Dr Abimbola Olumide Adekanmbi, made the call while delivering a lecture at the weekend titled “Antibiotic Resistance Through the One Health Lens: A Mosaic of Aces and Offsides.”

Adekanmbi said that tackling antimicrobial resistance requires more than producing research papers, stressing the need to translate scientific knowledge into practical action and public understanding.

He said the same principle applies to antimicrobial resistance, which is driven by interconnected activities involving humans, animals and the environment.

One major cause, he noted, was the unnecessary use of antibiotics.

“Some people take antibiotics without having any infection. Someone may have a headache and think, ‘the best thing is to take antibiotics,” he said.

Such unnecessary exposure, he stated, gives microorganisms opportunities to adapt and develop resistance, potentially making the drugs ineffective when they are later needed to treat genuine infections.

Adekanmbi, who also identified the environment as an important part of the problem, pointing to hospital wastewater, solid waste dumpsites, surface water, human waste, chemical waste and animals and their environments, advocated better treatment of wastewater and improved environmental management as part of efforts to control the spread of resistance.

According to him, research findings must not remain within academic institutions.

He, however, called for stronger collaboration between universities, government agencies, healthcare professionals, farmers, environmental authorities and communities so that research evidence can inform policies and everyday practices.

Adekanmbi said public enlightenment should explain not only what antibiotic resistance is, but also why people should avoid self-medication, why antibiotics should be used responsibly and how poor sanitation and environmental practices can contribute to the problem.

He, therefore, called for responsible antibiotic use, stronger antimicrobial stewardship, improved diagnosis, better infection prevention, effective regulation and proper management of hospital and agricultural waste.

He also stressed the importance of involving farmers and veterinarians because antimicrobial use in animals can contribute to the wider resistance problem.