Defining Antibiotic Inertia: Application of a Focused Clinical Scenario Survey to Illuminate A New Target for Antimicrobial Stewardship During Transitions of Care

In clinical scenario surveys, inpatient providers were more likely to report continuing inappropriate (odds ratio, 2.02 [95% confidence interval, 1.35-3.03]; P<.001) or broad-spectrum (1.8 [1.27-2.56]; P=.001) antibiotic therapy when initiated by emergency department providers, than to change to appropriate or narrow-spectrum therapy, respectively. Antibiotic inertia could represent a significant antibiotic stewardship target.