Careers in Infectious Diseases

ID FAQ

Specialty of practice beyond general medicine (internal or pediatrics)

An ID specialist may see patients when:

an infection is suspected but difficult to diagnose
an infection is rare or complicated to treat
a patient does not respond to treatment
a healthy person plans to travel to a foreign country or a location where infection risk is high
treating illnesses becomes a part of a patient's overall care, for example, a patient with HIV/AIDS
an infection occurs in an immunocompromised person
an infection requires prolonged or IV therapy

Globally, infectious diseases rank as the 3rd leading cause of death in 2020 according to WHO; behind Ischemic heart disease and stroke
COVID-19 was the third leading cause of death in the United States in 2020 and an additional > 50,000 persons died from influenza and pneumonia
ID specialists are on the leading edge of some of the hottest topics in medicine today—from treatment for HIV/AIDS patients, to the growing threat posed by antibiotic resistance, to ongoing concerns about COVID-19 and other emerging infections
This dynamic and evolving discipline offers exciting opportunities for physicians who enjoy helping others through problem-solving and medical detective work

After completion of medical school:

General internal medicine residency (IM) (3 years) OR
General pediatrics residency (3 years)
Also med-peds or med-psych combined residency (4 years)
Infectious Diseases (ID) fellowship (2 or 3 years depending on the program)
Options for further training: research, transplant infectious diseases, orthopedic infectious diseases, critical care, public health/travel medicine