Dame Sally Davies has a straightforward message about the coming year. We face a growing antibiotic emergency that could have devastating impacts on men, women and children across the globe, she says.

Davies, a former chief medical officer for England, has become a leading advocate for global action to fight the scourge of superbugs.

She told the Observer that there is a real danger that routine procedures – from surgery to childbirth – could carry widespread life-threatening risks because of the spread of bacteria that possess antimicrobial resistance (AMR). “About a million people die every year because of the spread of microbial resistance, and that figure will rise over the next 25 years,” she said. “It is really scary.”

Estimates suggest that by 2050, death rates from AMRs will have doubled, with figures indicating almost 40 million people will lose their lives to superbugs over the next 25 years, with elderly people especially at risk.