SCENARIO: Nolan is a 55-year-old male with a 5-day history of nasal congestion, rhinorrhea, malaise, and irritated sore throat. His nasal discharge has gone from clear to yellow in color. He took OTC acetaminophen at onset of symptoms with minimal relief. He has no health history and his examination in your office today is unremarkable. He has already missed 2 days of work and insists he needs an antibiotic. He adds that he “always gets an antibiotic” when he sees the other clinician in your clinic. When looking at his chart, you confirm this to be true. You have diagnosed Nolan with a VIRAL URI.
A) What medication treatment plan do you recommend, if any?
B) Discuss your patient education and outcome evaluation for this patient.
C) What does the literature say about the over prescribing of antibiotics?
