AIM OF THE PROJECT
To determine biosocial dynamics of antimicrobial resistance patterns in vulnerable populations of migrant workers across healthcare boundaries in northern South Asia in the context of the coronavirus pandemic.
PROJECT SUMMARY
Ordinary infections have been projected to become the most common cause of death by 2050 due to the increase globally of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The project AMR@LAB addresses the increasing global problem of AMR with a particular focus on the vulnerable category of labour migrants working in northern India and southern Nepal. The project develops a biosocial network analysis that makes it possible to link individuals, pathogens, workplaces, medicines and service providers into a comprehensive multi-scalar analysis of the dynamics between these actors as drivers of or barriers to development and transmission of AMR. This approach creates a shared analytical platform across the disciplines of anthropology, microbiology, public health and pharmacology that otherwise tend to work independently. AMR@LAB furthermore questions dogmas in global health policies that tend to separate drug-resistant tuberculosis (DRTB) from AMR more broadly; public from private healthcare; and occupational health from risk of infection. These are explored through a focus on mobility across boundaries that define healthcare delivery.
The project defines migrants as people who travel away from home for extended periods of time in search of work. The project is not concerned with international migration per se and expect that most migrant laborers will be domestic. The project will map their crossing of the porous boundaries between public and private sectors; and between AMR and DRTB. Based on community stakeholder consultations and a pilot study amidst the coronavirus crisis in South Asia, the project is organised in six work packages (WPs). WP 1-3 study AMR covering migrant workers, TB patients and selected pathogens in the ongoing context of the corona pandemic. WP4 constitutes a partial synthesis of medicine consumption and WP5 establishes overall project synergy through biosocial network analysis. WP6 engages with local communities in workshops and through educational material, produces policy recommendations and makes framework, findings and data widely available in the global research community.
