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Outpatient Parenteral Antibiotic Therapy (OPAT) Clinic

​​​​OPA) Clinic ​​provides a service which allows patients who would usually require hospitalisation for injectable antibiotics, to receive the same treatment without a need for admission.

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Introduction

Injectable antibiotics are commonly used to treat serious infections or infections caused by resistant bacteria. Often, a prolonged course of treatment is required in these complicated or serious infections, which would usually entail an extended hospital stay.

The OPAT Clinic provides a service which allows eligible patients to return to the comfort of home earlier without compromising on their essential antibiotic therapy.

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What is the process of OPAT?​

Before starting on OPAT, you will first be assessed by an OPAT doctor for suitability to receive OPAT therapy. If you are suitable, our OPAT team will provide further counselling on the costs, duration and follow-up visits during treatment.

A Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC), a special plastic tubing for delivering antibiotics into your veins, may be inserted into a vein in your arm prior to the start of OPAT. This will be removed at the completion of OPAT therapy.

​ Once OPAT therapy begins, you will be scheduled to return to the clinic several times a week for regular reviews, depending on the regime of antibiotics prescribed.​​

What happens after I complete my OPAT therapy?

After completing OPAT therapy, we will arrange for futher follow-up appointments with either an infectious diseases specialist or your doctor who had referred you to OPAT.

​ You may also be required to continue on a course of oral antibiotics or undergo further blood test and investigations.

​     Contributed by Department of Infectious Diseases​.