The European Antibiotic Awareness Day is marked annually on 18 November to raise awareness about the threat to public health of antibiotic resistance and prudent antibiotic use. The 2014 European Antibiotics Awareness Day focuses on self-medication with antibiotics.

The latest data confirms that across the European Union the number of patients infected by resistant bacteria is increasing and that antibiotic resistance is a major threat to public health. To combat antimicrobial resistance in Europe, EFSA cooperates closely with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Medicines Agency, particularly on infections that can be transmitted to humans from animals and food.