Infectious diseases

The specialty of infectious diseases, although small in comparison to the system-based specialties, provides the opportunity of a career ranging from challenging and constantly varied clinical management to intellectually stimulating frontier research into diseases of worldwide importance.

The specialty has encompassed the requirements of a clear objective-based training curriculum and offers training programmes ranging from pure Infectious Diseases to combined training in Infectious disease and General medicine, Infectious Disease and Medical Microbiology, and Infectious Disease, Tropical Medicine and General Medicine.

The essential (generic) training tracks in the curriculum are designed to train to competency in:

• Community acquired infection and its management
• Geographical medicine
• The management of immunocompromised patients including HIV / AIDS
• Antimicrobial therapy
• The management of hospital-acquired infection including infection in the intensive / high dependency setting
• The understanding of the role of Microbiology in the management of infection
• Research methodology and its application to clinical practice
• A variety of optional subjects such as virology, clinical pharmacology, public health, epidemiology vaccinology and overseas practice

The challenge to rationalise antibiotic use in the light of increasing microbial resistance, to combat clinical problems of healthcare acquired infection and worldwide pandemics of HIV, Hepatitis and Malaria, and to respond to emerging infection problems such as SARS makes infectious diseases an exciting and contemporary specialty.

Useful links

• Joint Royal Colleges of Physicians Training Board (JRCPTB)
• International Society for Infectious Diseases
• British Infection Association

Contacts

• Dr A Freedman STC Chair, Regional Specialty Adviser, Programme Director