Oregon
1. Click here to send an e-mail requesting a Proclamation from the Office of Governor Kate Brown.
2. Copy the Request Message text (below) and paste it into the body of the email.
3. Make sure to edit the contact details (highlighted portion below) to reflect your personal information.
4. Download the Draft Proclamation by clicking the Download Attachment #1 button below, and attach it to the email.
5. Download the Cited References by clicking the Download Attachment #2 button below, and attach it to the email as well.
6. Once you've edited your contact info in the email body and attached both Word Docs, send your email!
7. Click here to send us an email to let us know you've submitted a proclamation request for OR!
REQUEST MESSAGE (EMAIL BODY)
Copy the text below IN FULL and paste into the body of your email. *BE SURE TO EDIT THE HIGHLIGHTED DETAILS to reflect your personal information*
Dear Governor Kate Brown,
On behalf of the nearly 410,000 Oregon residents labeled penicillin-allergic, I am writing to request that a proclamation be issued this year for NATIONAL PENICILLIN ALLERGY DAY, September 28, 2018.
Allergy to penicillin and related antibiotics is the most commonly reported drug allergy in the United States.1 Studies have found that an estimated 10% of patients self-report as being penicillin allergic; and that 9 out of 10 of these patients reporting penicillin allergy are not truly allergic.1
This means that up to 368,500 Oregonians may be erroneously labeled as penicillin-allergic.
Why is this important?
- Inaccurate diagnosis of penicillin allergy can adversely impact medical costs for both patients and healthcare systems: research shows that antibiotic costs for patients reporting penicillin allergies are up to 63% higher than for those who do not report being penicillin-allergic.2
- Patients labeled penicillin-allergic have a threefold increased risk of adverse events (ADE).3 In the hospital setting, history of penicillin allergy translates to about 10% more hospital days, 30% higher incidence of VRE infections, 23% higher incidence of C difficile infections, and 14% higher incidence of MRSA infections.2
- By some estimates, up to half of all hospitalized patients in the US receive antibiotics and up to half of antimicrobial use may be inappropriate.4 There is a causal relationship between inappropriate antimicrobial use and resistance; changes in antimicrobial use lead to parallel changes in the prevalence of resistance.5
With your support in declaring NATIONAL PENICILLIN ALLERGY DAY, we can continue to increase public awareness about false penicillin allergy. It is our objective to help educate both healthcare practitioners and the citizens of our state on the serious public health and economic implications of false penicillin allergies.
Please find attached a draft of a proposed Proclamation for NATIONAL PENICILLIN ALLERGY DAY for September 28, 2018 to help build recognition and awareness for penicillin allergy and penicillin allergy testing.
PROCLAMATION CAN BE MAILED TO:
[Your First and Last Name]
[Your Phone Number]
[Your E-mail]
[Street Address]
[City], [State] [Zip Code]
DATE NEEDED: 09/18/2018
(REFERENCES ATTACHED)