De opkomst van een nieuw type MRSA, van casus naar beleid
Summary
The emergence of livestock associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in the Netherlands in 2004 is timely recognized. The risk-assessment and recommendations in 2006 were instantly adopted by policy-makers. Experts were assigned to formulate the important questions that had to be answered and a veterinary research program started at the end of 2006. The most important conclusion was that the risks are manageable. This conclusion is endorsed by the Health Council of the Netherlands in 2011. Monitoring and surveillance of developments remains important because of the potential for further evolution to a variant that is more virulent and more adapted to human hosts.
The most important studies were conducted in a short period of time. At the beginning the formulation, prioritising and initiation of studies and the involvement of policy-makers was coordinated. When the most important studies were concluded, coordination on the follow-up studies was missing. Studies were conducted within different national and international research programs. As a result the overview was missing.