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Antibiotics
Volume 14
Issue 5
10.3390/antibiotics14050451
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Review

Delivery of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT) in an Ever-Changing National Health Service (UK): Benefits, Barriers, and Opportunities

by
Oyewole Christopher Durojaiye
1,2,*,
Charlotte Fiori
2 and
Katharine Cartwright
1
1
Department of Infection and Tropical Medicine, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield S10 2JF, UK
2
OPAT Unit, University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, Derby DE22 3NE, UK
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Antibiotics 2025, 14(5), 451; https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14050451
Submission received: 25 March 2025 / Revised: 24 April 2025 / Accepted: 29 April 2025 / Published: 29 April 2025
Versions Notes

Abstract

Outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy (OPAT) is increasingly used to manage a broad range of infections, enabling patients to receive intravenous antibiotics safely outside inpatient settings. In this review, we examine the current landscape of OPAT practice across the United Kingdom (UK), assessing its clinical, economic, and operational impact. The benefits of OPAT for patients and the National Health Service (NHS), as well as its associated risks, are discussed. Additionally, we explore the challenges hindering its broader implementation within the UK. Finally, we highlight recent innovations and emerging applications of OPAT relevant to the NHS, underscoring key considerations for its future expansion and emphasising the need for a nationally coordinated strategy to realise its full potential.
Keywords: benefits; National Health Service; OPAT; outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy; risks; UK benefits; National Health Service; OPAT; outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy; risks; UK

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MDPI and ACS Style

Durojaiye, O.C.; Fiori, C.; Cartwright, K. Delivery of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT) in an Ever-Changing National Health Service (UK): Benefits, Barriers, and Opportunities. Antibiotics 2025, 14, 451. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14050451

AMA Style

Durojaiye OC, Fiori C, Cartwright K. Delivery of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT) in an Ever-Changing National Health Service (UK): Benefits, Barriers, and Opportunities. Antibiotics. 2025; 14(5):451. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14050451

Chicago/Turabian Style

Durojaiye, Oyewole Christopher, Charlotte Fiori, and Katharine Cartwright. 2025. "Delivery of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT) in an Ever-Changing National Health Service (UK): Benefits, Barriers, and Opportunities" Antibiotics 14, no. 5: 451. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14050451

APA Style

Durojaiye, O. C., Fiori, C., & Cartwright, K. (2025). Delivery of Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT) in an Ever-Changing National Health Service (UK): Benefits, Barriers, and Opportunities. Antibiotics, 14(5), 451. https://doi.org/10.3390/antibiotics14050451

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