Participation in international monitoring networks
France’s contribution, through Santé publique France and its partners, to European surveillance of antibiotic resistance in human health underscores its commitment to combating antibiotic resistance beyond France’s borders.
European surveillance of antibiotic resistance: the EARS-Net
France contributes to the surveillance of antibiotic resistance in human health at the European level and participates in the European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Network (EARS-Net), coordinated by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
This network monitors antibiotic resistance in seven bacterial species isolated from blood cultures and cerebrospinal fluid (blood cultures only for staphylococci and enterococci): Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pneumoniae since 1999, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis, and Enterococcus faecium since 2001, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa since 2005, and Acinetobacter since 2012. Streptococcus pneumoniae is primarily a community-acquired bacterial species, whereas the other four are both community- and healthcare-associated. This surveillance system was established in 1999 under the auspices of the Netherlands (RIVM) with funding from the European Commission and was called the European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (EARSS).
Santé publique France coordinates France’s contribution to this European surveillance.
Since 2021 (2020 data), France’s contribution to EARS-Net has been based on data from the National Reference Center for Pneumococcus and the National Mission for the Surveillance and Prevention of Antimicrobial Resistance in Healthcare Settings (Spares). Until 2020 (2019 data), France’s contribution to EARS-Net was based on data from the National Reference Center for Pneumococcus and three laboratory networks affiliated with the National Observatory for the Epidemiology of Bacterial Antibiotic Resistance (Onerba).
Learn more:
Antibiotic resistance in other bacterial species is monitored at the European level through networks dedicated to these species:
European Monitoring of Antibiotic Use: The ESAC-Net Network
Since late 2018, Santé Publique France has represented France within the ESAC-Net network as the "National Focal Point," a role established in the early 2000s to monitor the use of anti-infective agents in Europe, in both the outpatient and hospital sectors. This network has been part of the ECDC since 2011. Working closely with the ANSM, Santé publique France is also responsible for submitting annual data on the use of anti-infective agents to the ECDC.
See also
Global Surveillance of Antibiotic Resistance: The GLASS Network
The Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS) was launched by the WHO in 2015 to enable the standardized collection, analysis, and reporting of data on antimicrobial resistance worldwide. Its goal is to consolidate clinical, epidemiological, and laboratory data on the pathogens posing the greatest threats to global health.
France’s contribution to the GLASS network during this initial phase of participation consisted of transmitting EARS-Net data to the GLASS network.
Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS) Report
Collaboration between the ECDC and WHO Europe is growing and could lead, within a few years, to the development of a joint report on antibiotic use. In the meantime, the ECDC will share the data it collects from ESAC-NET member countries with WHO Europe to streamline the reporting process to the WHO’s GLASS platform.
A first global report on the surveillance of antibiotic use was recently published by the World Health Organization.
In relation to
Healthcare-associated infections
thematic dossier
Santé publique France is tasked with monitoring and preventing these infections in healthcare facilities, long-term care facilities, and community healthcare settings, thereby helping to limit...
