Polish company Bacteromic, which is developing a unique diagnostic system for identifying bacterial resistance, has partnered with the Antonina Leśniewska Pharmacy Museum in Warsaw. Together with museum educators, they will conduct workshops for children and youth to address the issue of bacterial resistance to antibiotics. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), antibiotic resistance poses a real threat to the life and health of people worldwide.
“We are a company that has faced some of the greatest challenges in modern medicine more than once. The Bacteromic system we have developed, now under trial in Polish hospitals and laboratories, has the potential to provide millions of patients worldwide with access to precise antibiotic therapy, safeguarding their health and lives,” said Gajane Żurawska, Global Business Development Director at Bacteromic. Knowing firsthand the escalating issue of antibiotic resistance due to overuse, we emphasize the critical need for educating and raising awareness about this problem from an early age. This responsibility extends to educators, medical and diagnostic firms, and the entire healthcare infrastructure. Given the global use of antibiotics, even minimal actions contribute significantly to the broader effort – enhancing the awareness and actions of millions of patients and doctors globally,” Żurawska emphasized.
In June this year, to celebrate Children’s Day, Bacteromic invited youth from a Warsaw primary school to the Pharmacy Museum to discuss antibiotic resistance. The company, along with museum educators, focused on changes in pharmacy operations from the late 19th century to the present day, and jointly explored the topic of bacteria resistant to antibiotics. The event concluded with participants creating their own therapeutic herbal mixes, marking the beginning of what has now evolved into an ongoing educational campaign.
Under the partnership, museum educators from the Warsaw Pharmacy Museum, in collaboration with Bacteromic, will deliver 50 comprehensive lessons on drug resistance, complemented by hands-on workshops. Before these sessions, educators will receive specialized training at Bacteromic’s laboratories to learn essential procedures and interact with the company’s leading discoverers, biochemists and engineers. The curriculum on antibiotic resistance will be woven into the museum’s annual educational offerings, targeting audiences ranging from preschoolers to secondary school students.
As museum professionals, we perceive the world of medications and treatment as a universal topic that attracts issues from various areas and can be a starting point for unconventional discussions. We often witness how objects on permanent display, when confronted with visitors, ignite perception and a kind of dialogue with the world of the 19th and 20th centuries – a world that no longer exists. This raises questions in our minds. Do interactions with these objects contribute to the young generation’s understanding of the current world?” asked Julia Kern, Director of the Pharmacy Museum. – The cooperation with Bacteromic fits into our educational program, which aims to connect historical awareness of the history of treatment with the need to discuss the current easy access to medicines and antibiotics, resistance, and the latest research. We are delighted to participate in educational meetings that lie at the heart of the Warsaw Pharmacy Museum’s activities,” continued Kern.
Bacteromic is part of the Scope Fluidics group, a company listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, which conducted the largest transaction in the Polish life science market two years ago. The Bacteromic system is designed to precisely indicate which type of antibiotic is most effective against a specific group of bacteria, thus enhancing treatment efficacy and preventing the overuse of these drugs. As experts explain, a large number of incorrectly prescribed, overused antibiotics have led to antibiotic resistance, which has become a global problem for doctors and patients worldwide. Each year, antibiotic resistance results in 700,000 deaths.
