Antibiotic prescriptions in the community by type of provider in the United States, 2005-2010

Over 6 years, antibiotic prescriptions overall and for broad-spectrum agents decreased for physicians and increased for NPs and PAs. Thus, increasing trends in the US of broad-spectrum antibiotic prescriptions can be attributed to midlevel providers. Interventions should be designed to reverse increasing prescribing trends, especially of broad-spectrum agents prescribed by NPs and PAs. Stewardship efforts should also be targeted towards dentists, since this group prescribes a higher proportion of antibiotics compared with midlevel providers.