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Newcastle Herald
Newcastle Herald
Health
Damon Cronshaw

Rapid tests needed to detect viruses or bacteria, amid antibiotics shortage

Professor Nathan Bartlett, pictured at Hunter Medical Research Institute, says "we need to better work out what the bug is". Picture by Jonathan Carroll

GPs should have rapid tests for viral and bacterial infections to know if they should give patients antibiotics, Newcastle virologist Nathan Bartlett says.

A shortage of antibiotics occurred this winter, with GPs prescribing more medication to treat a four-fold rise in pneumonia cases.

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