Landscape of Current Transplant Infectious Disease Training Programs

Transplant infectious disease (TID) training is not accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and is not standardized. Prior surveys of the training landscape in TID have focused on fellow responses; we sought description of programs from program directors and coordinators.

Along with the American Society of Transplantation (AST) Infectious Disease Community of Practice (IDCOP), we administered a survey to adult and pediatric ID training programs focusing on the structure, funding, curriculum, and outcomes of ID fellows participating in TID fellowships and tracks. This manuscript is a work product of the American Society of Transplantation's Education Committee.

We had 42 respondents representing 15 adult TID fellowships, 12 adult TID tracks, 4 pediatric TID fellowships, and 6 pediatric TID tracks. Adult TID fellowships required slightly more inpatient weeks than adult TID tracks: 26 versus 24 (p = 0.03). A majority of adult TID fellowships 10/14 (71%) rely on multiple sources of funding for their programs. A total of 67% of adult and 75% of pediatric TID fellowships have didactic curriculum, distinct from their general fellowship, and 53% of adult TID fellowships and no pediatric TID fellowships have distinct core competencies to evaluate TID fellows. Most TID fellows are pursuing TID-focused clinical careers.

Substantial heterogeneity exists among TID fellowships, and between fellowships and tracks. Future directions include updating prior guidance for adult and pediatric TID tracks and fellowships on curriculum, core competencies, and baseline requirements to ensure adequate competency in the care of these vulnerable patients.