The estimated cost of antibiotics dispensed in hospitals and in the community in England in 2004 and 2005 is shown in the table:
2004 2005 Community dispensing—net ingredient cost 170,939.00 161,987.50 Estimated hospital cost 254,172.70 246,248.30 Estimated total 425,111.70 408,235.80
Community dispensing data are taken from the Prescription Cost Analysis (PCA) system and use the British National Formulary (BNF) definition of Antibacterial Drugs, section 5.1. Hospital cost data are provided by IMS Health and include drugs from the same BNF section.