Understanding antibiotic resistance: impact of a longitudinal education intervention for children
We're proud to share our research evaluating Germ's Journey’s interactive, story‑driven workshop, designed to help primary school children understand antimicrobial stewardship and the threat of antibiotic resistance.
Our research shows that the creative intervention achieved a significant improvement in children's understanding that was maintained for at least a year, demonstrating its potential as a model for long-term public health education and a powerful reminder of why early education matters.
Abstract
Background:
Antimicrobial resistance is a global health crisis, with current projections suggesting up to 8 million deaths annually from resistant infections by 2050. Educating the public on the responsible use of antimicrobials, particularly antibiotics, is therefore essential. This research presents a novel educational intervention for primary school children (aged 8–11 years), designed to promote good antimicrobial stewardship and highlight the risks of antibiotic resistance. Uniquely, the programme's impact was tracked over a full year, providing rare evidence of sustained learning in this age group.
Methods:
A workshop and mixed methods assessments were centred around an interactive ‘pathfinder’-style book where pupils made evidence-based decisions at key plot points. This was delivered in five UK schools. A total of 244 pupils (aged 8–11 years) participated, including 139 Year 5 pupils who were monitored for knowledge retention over 12 months.
Results:
The intervention produced a statistically significant (p < 0.001) improvement in pupils’ knowledge and understanding of the appropriate use of antibiotics. Notably, Year 5 pupils demonstrated sustained retention of this knowledge for at least one year.
Conclusion:
This interactive, story-driven workshop offers an engaging and effective way to equip older primary school children with essential understanding of antimicrobial stewardship and the threat of antibiotic resistance. Crucially, the intervention achieved measurable impact that was maintained for at least a year, demonstrating its potential as a model for long-term public health education at an early age
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