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Infectious Diseases Fellowship Program

Established in 1976, the primary mission of the MUSC Infectious Diseases training program is to provide a comprehensive and balanced fellowship experience for physicians pursuing careers in academic and clinical infectious diseases. The specific objectives of our program are to:

  1. Provide fellows with robust clinical training and scholarly experience so they may go on to careers in academic infectious diseases and/or private clinical practice.
  2. Train fellows to become experts in providing care to the medically marginalized or underserved population.
  3. Provide a diverse fellowship experience so that our fellows may thrive in the many practice experiences available to infectious diseases fellowship graduates, including antimicrobial stewardship, infection prevention and hospital epidemiology, transplant infectious diseases, HIV, tropical medicine and global health, public health, private practice, and research.

Fellows spend their clinical time providing consultative care on one of two general infectious diseases consult services or the transplant infectious diseases consult service, as well as in ambulatory infectious diseases and HIV clinics. We also provide rotations in subspecialty areas within the field of infectious diseases and give fellows protected time for pursuit of research projects. Together the various clinical experiences and ample research time provide a comprehensive and balanced fellowship designed for a physician interested in the practice of clinical infectious diseases.

Our fellowship positions are funded by the Medical University of South Carolina. We accept 2-3 fellows per year. Please see below for more information on our clinical rotations, educational conferences, and research opportunities.

The division also offers a one-year Transplant Infectious Diseases fellowship program directed by Courtney Harris, M.D.

A service is the general infectious diseases consult service that covers MUSC Main Hospital. This service includes an attending, a fellow, and typically a resident and medical student. The infectious diseases pharmacist also frequently joins rounds. This service is our busiest with a patient population that includes general medicine admissions, orthopedic patients with bone and joint infections, neurosurgical patients, and patients in the surgical-trauma intensive care unit.

B service is the general infectious diseases consult service that covers Ashley River Tower and the Ralph H. Johnson VA hospital. This service includes an attending, a fellow, and typically a resident and medical student. The patient population here includes general medicine admissions, hepatology/GI patients, cardiology patients, patients with hematologic malignancies, and those in the medical-surgical intensive care unit.

C service is our transplant service, which covers Ashley River Tower and Main Hospital. This service is often attending only, with fellow involvement 4 months of the year. This service provides consultations for both solid organ transplant and bone marrow transplant recipients, as well as patients with left ventricular assist devices.

Ambulatory training includes one half-day weekly of fellow continuity clinic (HIV and general infectious diseases), VA infectious diseases clinic (HIV and general infectious diseases), and Friday fellows’ clinic (hospital discharge follow-up and new patient evaluations).

All fellows participate in rotations in the following subspecialty areas:

  • Clinical microbiology
  • Antimicrobial stewardship
  • Hospital epidemiology and infection control

Rotations in the following subspecialty areas are available to fellows with a particular interest:

  • Sexually transmitted diseases
  • Pediatric infectious diseases
  • Outpatient antibiotic therapy
  • PICC line insertion
  • HIV transition clinic (transition from pediatric to adult HIV care)
  • Hepatitis C clinic

Case of the Week (COW) conference is held weekly and is led by a fellow on the inpatient consult service. The fellow presents an interesting case and challenges the faculty to generate a differential diagnosis and ultimately diagnose the patient. This is followed by a literature review of the topic. This conference is an infectious diseases division favorite, as it gives us a chance to work collaboratively, learn from each other, and most importantly, have fun while doing it.

Fellow didactics are lectures provided by experts among the infectious disease faculty and cover such topics as HIV management, antimicrobial resistance, transplant infectious diseases, central nervous system infections, etc. “High yield” topics are presented in a concentrated time period, lasting approximately one week, during orientation for new fellows. Didactics are otherwise provided once weekly throughout the rest of the year.

Other monthly to bi-monthly conferences include:

  • Infectious Diseases Grand Rounds – Infectious diseases faculty or visiting speakers present their research or other timely topics of interest
  • HIV Collaborative Conference – This conference takes many forms and can include an update on HIV guidelines, introduction of newly available drugs, discussion of challenging cases, or outside speakers.
  • Journal Club – Fellows generally present Journal Club once yearly, with faculty presentations 1-2 times per year.

Fellows are provided ample time and faculty mentorship to conduct research in an area of particular interest to them. Mentored research, including participation in quality improvement, is a required element of training. The goal is for fellow research projects to result in a presentation at a scientific meeting and submission of a first-authored manuscript. The program can be modified for fellows interested in additional research experience.

Examples of current fellow research projects include:

  • Retrospective review of candidemia at our institution, with a focus on the impact of infectious diseases consultation on outcomes
  • Retrospective review of outcomes of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia, before and after implementation of mandatory infectious diseases consults for this diagnosis

My goal for fellowship was to be trained in a clinically robust program combined with good mentorship. At MUSC, I had just that experience. I was able to work closely with attendings who have a strong focus on clinical medicine, education and research in equal parts. As I move to the next phase of my career, I feel confident that I have received a well-rounded education.

2019 Infectious Diseases fellowship graduate

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How to Apply

Our fellowship positions are funded by the Medical University of South Carolina. We accept 2-3 fellows per year.  Applications must be submitted through the Electronic Residency Application System (ERAS) and must include the following:

  • 3 letters of recommendation (Including one letter from the Internal Medicine Residency Program Director)
  • Current photograph
  • United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) transcripts
  • Personal statement
  • Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG) Certificate, if applicable
  • Visa, if applicable

For information on applying through ERAS, please visit the ERAS Website. Applications for the upcoming academic year are accepted until September 30th. All applications are reviewed by the fellowship program director. Applicants will be contacted regarding an invitation to interview after receipt and review of the completed application. Interviews are scheduled on an individual basis and every effort is made to meet the needs of the applicant.

Effective July 2020, in accordance with ACGME guidance, and to avoid the need for applicant travel, all interviews will be conducted virtually.

We participate in the Medical Specialties Matching Program for fellowships in Infectious Diseases and we abide by the Infectious Diseases Society of America Match Resolution, the “all in” policy. All fellowship positions are exclusively offered through the NRMP Match.

The MUSC ID Fellowship has been a really great training program. I’ve gotten excellent clinical experience and the faculty has been extremely supportive academically and personally. If I chose programs again, I would pick MUSC without a doubt.

Current Infectious Diseases Fellow

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