Doctors and local media: a synergy for public health information? A controlled trial to evaluate the effects of a multifaceted campaign on antibiotic prescribing (protocol)

While the campaign messages will be mainly directed to the general population, doctors will be assessed. The main rationale for this apparent discrepancy lies in the influence patients may have on physicians considering their participation in its design.

This study could observe a reduction lower than 5% in the prescribing rate of antibiotics. Such a reduction would be of public health relevance and would determine average savings of almost twice as much as the campaign costs.