
Pick your Speciality
Infectiology
Q&A Professional Association
What are the key points of specialist training?
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- 3 years of infectiology + 2.5-3 years of general internal medicine or 2.5-3 years of pediatrics and adolescent medicine.
- Up to 6 months of tropical and travel medicine can be credited.
- Research can be credited as a foreign year.
How expensive is this specialist training?
There are no exact figures known to us. A certain number of courses/annual congresses must be attended.
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- The specialist diploma costs 4000 CHF.
- The title of infection control 1500 CHF.
What further training options and specializations are there?
There is a focus on infection prevention and control.
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- A maximum of 12 months of further training can be credited.
- A maximum of 6 months of further training can be credited simultaneously for the specialist title and the specialization.
How can a stay abroad in this area be implemented or is it even necessary? (e.g. necessity of the USMLE)
Research stays abroad can be financed with an SNSF fellowship. If you want to practice medicine in the USA, the USMLE is necessary, but has nothing to do with infectiology in Switzerland per se. A stay in the tropics can also be an opportunity to gain experience.
How well can this specialty be combined with research (clinical research or basic research)?
It is well compatible with research. Up to 1 year of completed MD/PhD training can be credited to the specialist in infectiology. The activity must be in the field of infectiology (including epidemiology), immunology (e.g. “host-pathogen” interaction) or microbiology.
How important is it to do research (e.g. to do an MD-PhD)?
Doing an MD-PhD is not necessary per se. In general, infectiology is a predominantly hospital-based field and the university subject is more research-oriented.
How important is it for your starting job to gain an insight into this subject area during the elective year?
During your studies, it is probably more important to gain an insight into the major subjects of internal medicine, surgery, etc. You can specialize in infectiology later.
Q&A Physicians
Head physician, F, 52 years old
How old are you?
52 y/o
Where did you study and when did you graduate?
University of Basel, 1996
Do you have a doctorate?
Yes
When did you become a specialist?
2002 (Internal medicine), 2008 (Infectiology)
How long did your specialist training take?
???
What is your current position (and background)?
Head physician
How does your working week look like?
- Workload: 100%
- Hours/week: approx. 60 hours
- Shift work: no shift work
- Patient contact: yes
When and why did you choose this specialisation?
- Broad range of the field
- Special interest in microbiology
- Interdisciplinary cooperation
How would you describe your time as a junior doctor?
- 1 year outpatient clinic infectiology
- 1 year consultant service
- 1 year hospital hygiene
Is part-time work possible already during residency?
Yes
What working conditions does your specialist title offer?
- Hospital
- Practice
- Research
How competitive is it to complete this specialist title in Switzerland?
Very competitive, as there are few jobs
How would you rate your work-life balance on a scale of 1-10? Would your colleagues with the same specialist title confirm this?
8
How easy is it to implement family planning in this field?
I succeeded, I have three children
What do you wish you had known before your specialist training?
Nothing
Why should someone choose this specialty?
Enthusiasm for complex interrelationships, interprofessional relationships
What challenges await someone in this field?
Nothing
Is it necessary to write the master’s/doctoral thesis in this subject area?
It is recommended as at least 1 publication is required for a specialist title (can also be a doctoral thesis).
Is it possible to find an assistant doctor position in this specialty directly after the state examination?
No
What advice would you give to young medical students?
Have an interest in the subject and enthusiasm for the profession
Physician, F, 33 years old
How old are you?
33 y/o
Where did you study and when did you graduate?
University of Zürich, 2016
Do you have a doctorate?
Yes
When did you become a specialist?
Submitted, not yet received
How long did your specialist training take?
???
What is your current position (and background)?
Deputy senior physician.
How does your working week look like?
80%, 40 hours, no shift work, very rare patient contact. I currently work as a senior physician in the hospital hygiene department at the USZ, where I am involved in daily isolation activities, outbreak control, Switzerland-wide nvHAP surveillance and other surveillance activities (CAUTI, CLABSI)
When and why did you choose this specialization?
I always found it exciting that as an infectiologist you get an insight into all specialties, as infections occur everywhere. You also have a wide range of patients, from healthy people like many of our patients living with HIV to intensive care patients. I also always found microbiology and virology very exciting.
How would you describe your time as a resident?
I had a very good time and gained an insight into all areas of infectiology. The teaching is very good and we had a good atmosphere in the team.
Is part-time work possible already during residency?
Yes.
What working modalities does your specialist title offer?
- Hospital
- Practice (although not the full spectrum here)
- Research
How competitive is it to complete this specialist title in Switzerland?
The job market is limited but I had no problems getting the job.
How would you rate your work-life balance on a scale of 1-10? Would your colleagues with the same specialist title confirm this?
8
How easy is it to implement family planning in this field?
Family planning is easily possible.
What do you wish you had known before your specialist training?
The number of jobs available after specialist training is very limited – too many infectiologists are being trained.
Why should someone choose this specialty?
Interest in the subject. Interest in a mixed position (e.g. infectiology and internal medicine), as it is rare to find a purely infectiology position.
What challenges await someone in this field?
Nothing
Is it necessary to write the master’s/doctoral thesis in this subject area?
No.
Is it possible to find an assistant doctor position in this specialty directly after the federal examination?
Theoretically yes, but due to the frequent internal medicine comorbidities of patients in consultation hours and the complexity of patients in the consultation service, this is expressly not recommended.
What advice would you give to young medical students?
Job market is limited. To keep the full picture of infectiology, you are tied to one hospital.
Head physician, F, 49 years old
How old are you?
49 y/o
Where did you study and when did you graduate?
University of Basel, 2000
Do you have a doctorate?
Yes
When did you become a specialist?
2010
How long did your specialist training take?
???
What is your current position (and background)?
Head physician for infectiology at the Cantonal Hospital of Graubünden.
After qualifying as a specialist, I was a senior physician for infectiology at Inselspital for 4 years
How does your working week look like?
- Workload: 80%
- Hours/week: approx. 40 hours
- Shift work: no shift work
- On weekends: telephone on-call duty. (No on-site service at the hospital)
- Patient contact: Regular patient contact during consultation hours and as part of the infectiology consultation service
When and why did you choose this specialization?
During my specialist training in internal medicine, when I was able to rotate to the infectious disease department at the USZ.
How would you describe your time as a resident?
The residency in infectiology (consultation and consultation service) at the USZ was by far the most interesting and instructive position I had as an resident – my interest in the subject was awakened, accompanied by good teaching.
Is part-time work possible already during residency?
Yes.
What working modalities does your specialist title offer?
The training can be completed in hospital and in research. Not in the general practice, although all training positions also have an infectiology consultation hour in which outpatients are cared for.
How competitive is it to complete this specialist title in Switzerland?
When I did the training, it was rather difficult to get a training position. I think this has changed in the meantime. The bottleneck is probably getting a good, sufficiently long training position in the infectious disease consultation service.
How would you rate your work-life balance on a scale of 1-10? Would your colleagues with the same specialist title confirm this?
8
How easy is it to implement family planning in this field?
During the rather strict training period, family planning is probably rather difficult. My family planning only took place after I had completed my training (with all the advantages and disadvantages of old motherhood, our child is an only child).
What do you wish you had known before your specialist training?
I informed myself about the important facts before I started my training. I wanted to do an internship that would enable me to work in a hospital in the long term.
Why should someone choose this specialty?
Infectiology is a very interesting and varied subject and offers the opportunity to carry out very exciting work in the hospital on a long-term basis.
What challenges await someone in this field?
An infectious disease specialist has to acquire a great deal of specialist knowledge. This knowledge and the impact of an infectiologist is sometimes underestimated in hospitals and is not valued enough.
Is it necessary to write the master’s/doctoral thesis in this subject area?
Is an advantage, but not mandatory.
Is it possible to find an assistant doctor position in this specialty directly after the federal examination?
No. Nor does it make sense. A solid basic training in internal medicine is a prerequisite for becoming a specialist in infectiology.
What advice would you give to young medical students?
Try to find out as soon as possible which areas of medicine you are particularly interested in and which patient groups you would like to work with. Choose your positions accordingly. Try to imagine where and in which position you would prefer to work in the long term and plan your training accordingly.