A WEST Somerset GP practice is trying to reduce the number of antibiotic prescriptions it issues after being told it was the second-highest in the whole of the county.

Quantock Medical Centre practice manager Helen Stacey said: “Unfortunately, this is not a good place to be, or an award we want to win.

“We need to reduce the amount of antibiotics we prescribe as they are losing their effectiveness at an increasing rate.

“The more you use an antibiotic, the more bacteria become resistant to it, both in individuals and in the general population.”

Ms Stacey said antibiotics were only needed for treating certain infections caused by bacteria, such as strep throat, whooping cough, and urinary tract issues.

Nearly all colds and most coughs, sinusitis, earache, and sore throats would become better without antibiotics.

Ms Stacey said: “Taking antibiotics can also cause some unpleasant side effects, including rash, dizziness, nausea, yeast infections, diarrhoea, and in more severe cases can lead to colon damage and death, due to severe and life-threatening allergic reactions.”

The medical centre, in Banneson Road, Nether Stowey, has two GPs, Dr Christopher Stone and Dr Dietlinde Pempeit Klein, and was rated ‘good’ by the Care Quality Commission.

Ms Stacey said patients should not pressure their doctor to prescribe them antibiotics for their condition.

She said: “Taking antibiotics creates resistant bacteria.

“Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria no longer respond to the drugs designed to kill them and therefore over-prescribing of antibiotics can render these drugs useless in the long term.”