In-Person vs Tele-Infectious Disease (Tele-ID) Care: Is One Better?

Pediatric Infectious Disease Outpatient Telehealth: An Accepted Model of Care

This retrospective cohort study assessed the differences between in-person vs telehealth (TH) services in pediatric infectious diseases. TH was noted to be used more frequently by Hispanic patients and established patients. TH decreased travel distance and no-show/cancellation rates. TH offers a valuable outpatient option for pediatric infectious disease patients.

Telemedicine Offers Solutions for the Rural Disparities in Infectious Disease (ID) Care Delivery

In the United States, there is a growing shortage of infectious diseases (ID) physicians that highlights disparity between rural versus urban ID expertise resulting in a healthcare gap with significant consequences for patients unable to have ID directed care available to them. Telemedicine is a crucial modality of healthcare that can be used to bridge that gap by providing quality care consistent with outcomes for inpatient ID service models, while also serving as a tool for much greater geographic coverage by a single ID physician. As a specialty, we must embrace telemedicine for the good of our patients, whose local communities may not have access to ID care, and to create the incentive of broader community impact for potential entrants into the ID field.

Remote Practice of Infectious Diseases Through Telemedicine: Improving Access for Patients and Appeal for Physicians

The specialty of infectious diseases (ID) is facing headwinds in attracting new physicians into training and clinical practice, leading to workforce shortage and rising burnout among existing ID physicians. The distribution of ID physicians across the country is skewed, and many Americans do not have access to ID expertise. Novel care models are needed to ensure the longevity of the ID specialty and patient access to ID care. ID telemedicine provides a new opportunity for ID physicians with the benefits of residing in one's preferred geographic location, eliminating the need to commute, and structuring the workday to improve work-life balance. This viewpoint, which includes personal experiences in transitioning from in-person to remote ID practice, describes the extent of challenges facing the ID specialty and how telemedicine can reduce burnout among ID physicians, attract more physicians into the specialty, and improve access to ID care.

Minimizing Low-Value, Uncompensated Work in Academic Infectious Diseases: A 6-Step Program

Uncompensated work in academic infectious diseases (ID) may be high value (eg, important for academic promotion or necessary for advancement to leadership roles) or low value (eg, not aligning with or contributing to professional goals and aspirations). "Curbside" consultations, participation in hospital committees outside of professional interests, and other "citizenship" tasks are common examples of threats to our valuable time as ID providers. Herein, we define the scope of the problem of low-value uncompensated work in academic ID and outline a 6-step program to minimize these threats. Collaboration with professional sponsors, such as division chiefs, to align individual and team goals and use of a "value-versus-compensation" matrix to prioritize activities may help us establish our own agendas and reclaim our professional autonomy.

Child Health Needs and the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Workforce: 2020-2040

Pediatric infectious diseases (PID) physicians prevent and treat childhood infections through clinical care, research, public health, education, antimicrobial stewardship, and infection prevention. This article is part of an American Board of Pediatrics Foundation-sponsored supplement investigating the future of the pediatric subspecialty workforce. The article offers context to findings from a modeling analysis estimating the supply of PID subspecialists in the United States between 2020 and 2040. It provides an overview of children cared for by PID subspecialists, reviews the current state of the PID workforce, and discusses the projected headcount and clinical workforce equivalents of PID subspecialists at the national, census region, and census division levels over this 2-decade period. The article concludes by discussing the education and training, clinical practice, policy, and research implications of the data presented. Adjusting for population growth, the PID workforce is projected to grow more slowly than most other pediatric subspecialties and geographic disparities in access to PID care are expected to worsen. In models considering alternative scenarios, decreases in the number of fellows and time spent in clinical care significantly affect the PID workforce. Notably, model assumptions may not adequately account for potential threats to the PID workforce, including a declining number of fellows entering training and the unknown impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and future emerging infections on workforce attrition. Changes to education and training, clinical care, and policy are needed to ensure the PID workforce can meet the future needs of US children.