Report reveals why new doctors are increasingly avoiding crucial medical practice: 'We aren't going to have enough people'

A deeply important medical speciality is withering due to a lack of enrollment, according to Axios. 

What's happening?

Fewer and fewer doctors are enrolling in infectious disease specializations. A combination of attacks on vaccination practices by the public and diminished funding from the federal government has pushed doctors into other fields. 

Data from the National Residency Matching Program has shown that 61% of infectious disease fellowship positions were filled this year, versus 88% occupancy five years ago. Other data has shown that among physician specialties, infectious disease specialists have some of the lowest average salaries.

"The hostility directed at the field has been unlike anything we've seen in decades. That takes a psychological toll, and trainees see that," wrote infectious disease specialist Boghuma Titanji.

Why are infectious diseases important?

While the spectre of COVID-19 looms large, a range of infectious diseases is on the rise. Vaccine hesitancy has played a role, especially with measles. Another major variable is the shifting climate. Warmer, wetter weather has allowed for the proliferation of mosquitoes, ticks, and other infectious vectors. This has created an explosion of Lyme disease and West Nile Virus cases.    

"We are all at risk of infectious diseases, and I think people forget that there's a range here," said Wendy Armstrong, president-elect of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, per Axios. "I am really worried that we aren't going to have enough people to treat those kinds of patients."

What's being done about infectious diseases?

Despite headwinds, infectious disease research continues. New treatment options for dengue fever are on the horizon, while other new methods can do a better job of detecting tick-borne viruses. A particularly effective malaria vaccine is well on its way to clinical trials. 

You can do your part by getting routine vaccinations. This helps enhance herd immunity and prevents the spread of harmful diseases.

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