Antibiotic use is a key driver of antibiotic resistance. While 80-90% of antibiotics are initiated in ambulatory settings, where patient expectations have been shown to increase the likelihood of antibiotic prescribing, the majority of interventions are geared toward healthcare providers in hospital settings. We describe a video series created by a State Health Department (SHD) to increase antibiotic awareness among the general public and how technology was leveraged to reach the audience.

The project occurred from 2016-2018. Scripts for 6 videos were developed by SHD in partnership with local AMS experts. Topics included pharyngitis, sinusitis, acute otitis media (AOM), urinary tract infection (UTI), and bronchitis and an AMS overview. Videos were narrated by influential respected local physicians. Social media platforms (SMP) were used to promote the videos. SMP1 is a social networking site, posts with and without paid advertising were used. Advertising cost was $20 per video. SMP2 is a video platform, no paid advertising was used.

SMP1 paid advertising resulted in higher video views: pharyngitis (n=3455), sinusitis (n=2935), AOM (n=2634), UTI (n=2435), bronchitis (n=2125), and AMS overview (n=1900). SMP1 without paid advertising resulted in fewer views: sinusitis (n=319), bronchitis (n=352), and AMS overview (n=493). Paid advertising on SMP1 resulted in 6.4 times higher viewership (range 4, 9.2) compared to SMP1 without paid advertising. Views on SMP2 was lower than SMP1 without paid advertising: pharyngitis (n=285), sinusitis (n=144), AOM (n=84), UTI (n=113), bronchitis (n=70), and AMS overview (n=168). Each video had an average 21.2 times higher viewership on SMP1 (range 11.1, 31.3) compared to SMP2. There was 3.4 times higher views (range 2.8, 5) when comparing SMP1 without paid advertising to SMP2.

Utilizing a social media platform with multiple ways to post content resulted in the greatest viewership. Paid advertising increased viewership significantly. Reactions to the videos have been positive.