Waning Interest in Infectious Disease Among Trainees: Is Medicine Pulling the Goalie?

Relatively low salaries in ID compared to other medical specialties in a world where cost of living is skyrocketing are an easy explanation for unmet needs of ID training programs to fill their positions. However, the interest in ID falling short of expectations may reflect that some features of the ID specialty are counter to select pervasive tendencies of modern culture, including i) slow uptake of innovation into daily routines of ID practioners, ii) the emphasis of clinical mastery of ID practioners in an environment of medical corporatization and increased focus on revenue generation, and iii) the fact that ID practice takes societal interests into consideration (eg. prevention of antibiotic resistance) in a world dominated by rights of individuals frequently at the expense of the common good. This article reflects on these possibilities in order to determine what steps can be taken to resurrect interest in our specialty.