Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Workshop, September 2009, Trinidad and Tobago

A train-the-trainer Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Surveillance workshop was held in September 2009, in Trinidad and Tobago.  The purpose was to train participants on standard susceptibility bacteriology techniques and the use of WHONET software for AMR data entry and analysis.  Participants were laboratory technologists from hospitals and national laboratories from Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago, as well as from CAREC.  The workshop was divided into lectures/presentations on AMR surveillance, laboratory sessions on the AMR disk diffusion method and training on WHONET.  The results of AMR tests conducted during the workshop were subsequently entered into WHONET and analyzed during the plenary sessions.  While participants knew the disk diffusion method; media preparation, quality control and interpretation of results were identified as areas of concern and required additional focus during the workshop.

The WHONET sessions consisted on hands-on training on downloading WHONET software, AMR data entry and analysis, use of AMR data to identify outbreaks, creation of a laboratory and variables for data entry in the database, transfer of AMR data from other databases into WHONET, trouble shooting, and use of WHONET database for other data such as serotyping and phage typing.  Participants created their respective laboratories in the database, entered their country AMR data and conducted analyses.  The software was found to be easy to use and participants indicated their willingness to use it in the future.