Clinical and Research Training in Infectious Diseases
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Introduction
The Infectious Diseases Division of the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry established its Clinical and Research Fellowship Program in 1970. Since its inception, the Program has served consistently as a major source of accomplished clinicians and academic investigators in the field.
The primary goal of the Program is to provide fellows with optimal inpatient and outpatient training in the evaluation and management of patients with a broad variety of infectious diseases. In addition, the Program provides trainees with the opportunity to learn or augment basic research skills, and to conduct original laboratory and/or clinical investigation. This approach provides fellows with the necessary tools to develop careers in either clinical practice or academic infectious diseases. Fellows are usually admitted to the Program after three years of residency training in Internal Medicine. The standard fellowship is for a period of two years required for board eligibility in Infectious Diseases. Clinical training is most intensive during the first year, and the second year affords opportunities to engage in laboratory or clinical research. Fellows pursuing academic careers may be offered additional years of training devoted principally to research.
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Clinical Training
Clinical training is provided primarily on the adult in-patient services and in the Infectious Diseases clinics at the University of Rochester's Strong Memorial Hospital (SMH). Additional in-patient experience is acquired on pediatric services at SMH, and at University-affiliated community hospitals in Rochester. Clinics include general Infectious Diseases Clinic, AIDS Clinic, Travel Medicine Clinic, and the Sexually Transmitted Diseases Clinic. Fellows in Infectious Diseases see a broad variety of infectious disease problems in both hospitalized and ambulatory patients. As a referral center for bone marrow transplantation, organ transplantation (liver, kidney, pancreas, and heart), oncology, burns, trauma, and AIDS care, SMH offers exposure to the full spectrum of infectious complications in the compromised patient. Intensive Care Units in medicine, surgery, cardiovascular diseases, pediatrics, neonatology, burn/trauma, and neurosurgery provide specialized care to critically ill patients from a wide region of western New York and Pennsylvania. SMH and the affiliated hospitals, all with active emergency departments, also admit patients with typical community-acquired infections such as pneumonia, cellulitis, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, and meningitis.
Trainees are assigned to in-patient infectious disease services for approximately 12 months during a two-year fellowship. Most of the first year of training is devoted to in-patient rotations at SMH on the general Infectious Diseases Service, AIDS Service, and Transplant ID Service. Trainees have few clinical rotations in the second year, allowing substantial time for research. Rotations on infectious disease consultation services at affiliated hospitals during both years provide additional clinical experience and afford the trainee an increasing level of clinical responsibility. In-patient rotations on Pediatric Infectious Diseases are optional.
A variety of clinical conferences, described below, ensure that trainees acquire broad knowledge of infectious diseases and allied disciplines, including infection control and hospital epidemiology. In addition, one month during the first year of fellowship is spent in the Clinical Microbiology Laboratories, learning about diagnostic laboratory procedures which are crucial to the role of the infectious diseases physician. This experience is designed to provide the trainee a basic understanding of diagnostic techniques in bacteriology, virology, mycology, serology, and parasitology.
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Research Training
Fellows in the first year are exposed to the research activities of the Division in weekly research conferences and participation in a Fellows' Research Day. Fellows select a faculty preceptor and an area of research. A one-month Research Laboratory rotation during the first year affords fellows the opportunity to define a research project which the trainee will pursue during the majority of the second year. While trainees are strongly encouraged to participate in a research experience, those who wish to focus on clinical training may elect to pursue additional clinical rotations in the second year. A third year of fellowship is possible for those trainees with special interest and aptitude in research.
The major research interests and expertise of the faculty are in the areas of basic and clinical virology, viral immunology and pathogenesis, and evaluation of viral vaccines and antiviral agents. The Infectious Diseases Division includes several research programs supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), including a Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Unit, an HIV Vaccine Trials Unit (HVTU), and an AIDS Clinical Trials Unit (ACTU). Clusters of investigators address several virus infections with regard to both basic (e.g. molecular virology, viral immunology), and clinical (e.g. evaluation of candidate vaccines) studies. These include human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), influenza virus, and human papillomavirus (HPV) infections. Other vaccines (e.g., herpes simplex virus, varicella-zoster virus, vaccinia, avian influenza, plague, anthrax) are also studied. Clinical trials of antibiotic and antifungal agents are performed. Additional areas of interest and expertise are indicated in the roster of faculty of the Division. Thus, there are opportunities for basic and/or clinical research training in several areas of infectious diseases, with an emphasis on viral infections.
 In addition to these special interests within the Infectious Diseases Division, other opportunities for research are available within the departments of Microbiology and Immunology, Biochemistry and Biophysics, and in the Center for Vaccine Biology and Immunology. Part of the Aab Institute of Biomedical Sciences, the Center is located in the state-of-the-art 225,000 square-foot Arthur Kornberg Medical Research Building, opened at the Medical Center in 1999.
The Rochester Clinical Research Curriculum (RCRC), an NIH-supported program, offers opportunities for infectious diseases fellows to pursue advanced instruction in clinical research methods at the University. Participation in the RCRC program, along with completion of a research project, can lead to the Master of Public Health (MPH) degree.
A list of recent representative publications by our Faculty illustrates the range of clinical and basic research interests which provide opportunities for training.
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Training Conferences & Rounds
- Attending Rounds - Daily rounds by a member of the full-time faculty with fellows, residents and medical students.
- Infectious Diseases Clinical Conference - Weekly conference which is run by the ID fellows and residents in Medicine and Pediatrics. Two cases are discussed in detail each week. Topics in clinical microbiology, pharmacology and infection control are also presented.
- HIV Conference - Weekly conference on clinical and laboratory aspects of HIV infection.
- City-Wide ID Conference - Monthly conference at which outstanding cases are presented from each of the hospitals in Rochester.
- ID Journal Club - Weekly rotating review of all clinically relevant journals in infectious diseases. Both faculty and fellows participate.
- ID Research Conference - Weekly presentation of ongoing research by fellows and faculty.
- Hospital Epidemiology Series - Seminars presented by the Infection Control program. Integrated into ID Clinical Conference and ID Seminar Series.
- ID Seminar Series - Weekly seminars covering core topics in Infectious Disease, including antibiotics, pharmacokinetics, biostatistics, epidemiology, research design, vaccines, travel medicine, parasitology, immunology, HIV, and major disease entities. Presented by faculty.
- Microbiology Lab Rounds - Presentation and discussion of interesting cases in the lab; 3 afternoons per week.
- Formal Courses - Fellows may attend Microbiology, Virology, Immunology, Biostatistics, Epidemiology and other courses offered by the School of Medicine.
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Facilities
The Infectious Diseases Division's research laboratories occupy approximately 10,000 square feet, and include biocontainment facilities for HIV studies. The laboratories are well equipped for studies in clinical and molecular virology and immunology of infectious diseases, with additional facilities for support, including washing/autoclaving, darkroom, walk-in warm and cold rooms, etc. In addition, office space for fellows is provided and desktop computers are available for their use. The Infectious Diseases outpatient facilities (ID Clinic, AIDS Clinic) occupy 4,000 square feet of space immediately adjacent to the research laboratories and offices of the Division.
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Applications
Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS)
We are accepting applications for Fellowship positions beginning July 2010. Our program participates in the Electronic Residency Application Service (ERAS Fellowships) of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). All application materials are submitted electronically. For complete information and registration visit ERAS Fellowships at http://www.aamc.org/students/erasfellow/start.htm. ERAS opens to applicants in mid-November 2008, and applications can be submitted beginning December 1, 2008.
ERAS Information and Instructions:
University of Rochester Application Instructions:
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University of Rochester ID Fellowship - Application Instructions |
| University of Rochester Application Deadline: April 1(year before appointment) |
| University of Rochester Interview Period: January - May 1(year before appointment) |
For additional information contact:
Christine M. Hay, MD, Director
Wendy Lepsch, Coordinator
Infectious Disease Fellowship Program
University of Rochester Medical Center
601 Elmwood Avenue, Box 689
Rochester, NY 14642 Phone: 585-275-5871
Fax: 585-442-9328
Appointments are for a 2 year period. An interview is highly desirable. Fellows are selected in accordance with procedures established by the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the Medical Specialties Matching Program of the NRMP. The University of Rochester is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and applications from members of minority groups are strongly encouraged.
2008 University of Rochester |