The fellowship begins with an orientation to the University of Florida, UF Health/Shands Hospital, and the Malcolm Randall Veterans Administration Hospital as well as an orientation to the inpatient and outpatient clinical services.
The first two months of the fellowship didactic and interactive lecture series is devoted to development of a foundation in general infectious diseases. After the first two months of the fellowship, the program transitions to a longitudinal didactic and interactive lecture series consisting of journal clubs, management conferences, infection prevention and control conferences, research conferences, board review sessions, and combined microbiology and infectious diseases conferences.
Early in training, fellows will identify one of three training tracks, the clinical/education track, research track, or global medicine track depending on their specific career goals.
Once the fellows choose a track they will also pick a faculty mentor who will meet with them regularly to ensure that they are making progress reaching their career goals and that they are taking advantage of the diverse and extensive training opportunities available at the University of Florida. Fellows are encouraged to select among various elective choices available to enhance their educational and career development.
The overall structure of the fellowship is listed below.
- Year 1: The first year is mostly clinical with the majority of inpatient experiences occurring during this time. Fellows will be on teaching services at either the Malcolm Randall VA Medical Center or UF Health/Shands Teaching Hospital for approximately 9 months. The remaining months will be devoted to rotations in microbiology and other electives. Fellows will have continuity clinic either at UF Health/Shands or Malcolm Randall VA Medical Center.
- Year 2: The second year is mostly for electives in the chosen career track. There are 4 months of inpatient service during the second year to give a total of 13 months of inpatient service time over the course of the fellowship. The inpatient service occurs at the same sites as in the first year and the continuity clinic extends into the second year.
- Year 3: (Optional) The third year is for those who choose research or global medicine tracks.
Career Track Electives
- Antimicrobial Stewardship/OPAT
- Transplant ID
- Hospital Epidemiology
- HIV
- Microbiology
- Pediatrics Infectious Diseases
- Tuberculosis
- Tropical Microbiology and Parasitology
- ID Ambulatory Rotation
- Sepsis
Fellowship Career Tracks
- Clinical/Education Track: This track is for fellows interested in careers in private practice, industry, or other clinical practice. The duration is two years. Fellows completing the clinical/education track will be expected to participate in scholarly activity.
- Research Track: This track will last a minimum of three years and is intended for fellows interested in pursuing a career in academics or industry. Fellows interested in this track are encouraged to discuss their interest early on in the interview process or soon after onboarding so that appropriate planning can take place. Fellows choosing the research track will be expected to author at least two abstracts to national or international meeting and submit as an author or co-author at least two manuscripts to a peer-reviewed journal.
- Currently available funded opportunities for research include Masters of Science in Epidemiology and T32 Translational Science Training to Reduce the Impact of Alcohol on HIV Infection.
- Global Medicine Track: (Optional Third Year) This track is for fellows interested in pursuing a career in academics, non-governmental organizations, government agencies, or other non-profits focused on working with international partners. Fellows choosing the global medicine track will be expected to author at least one review article, book chapter, or similar scholarly work agreed upon with the fellow’s faculty mentor.