Abstract
BackgroundEmergence of more antimicrobial-resistant pathogens and repeated occurrence of infectious disease (ID) outbreaks highlight the importance of ID specialists. This study aimed to assess the working status of ID specialists and identify problems faced by ID professionals in Korea.MethodsAn online-based survey was conducted over 11 days (from December 17–27, 2020), targeting all active adult (n=281) and pediatric (n=71) ID specialists in Korea (total=352). An online-based survey link was forwarded to them via text messages and e-mails by the office of the Korean Society of Infectious Diseases and the Korean Society of Pediatric Infectious Diseases. Questions regarding the practice areas of the specialists were divided into five categories: (1) clinical practices of outpatient care, inpatient care, and consultations; (2) infection control; (3) antibiotic stewardship; (4) research; and (5) education and training. We investigated the weekly time-use patterns for these areas of practice.ResultsA total of 144/281 (51.2%) adult ID specialists and 51/71 (71.8%) pediatric ID specialists participated in the survey. Among them, 144 (73.8%) respondents were involved in all practice categories investigated. The most common practice area was outpatient service (93.8%), followed by consultation (91.3%) and inpatient service (87.7%)(Table 1). Specialists worked a median of 57 (interquartile range: 50–65) hours weekly: patient care, 29 (14–37) hours; research 11 (5–19) hours; infection control 4 (2–10) hours; antibiotic stewardship, 3 (1–5) hours; and education/training, 2 (2–6) hours (Table 2).ConclusionWe identified areas of practice and patterns of time use among adult and pediatric ID specialists in Korea. Most experts were in charge of all necessary areas (including treatment, education, research, infection control, and antibiotic stewardship) in medical institutions with limited resources. It is expected that these problems can be solved by appropriately compensating individuals and medical institutions for their invisible activities (including infection control and antibiotic stewardship) and by securing additional human resources. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures
Highlights
The current roles of infectious disease (ID) specialists are diverse, including diagnosis and treatment of various IDs, infection control, antibiotic stewardship, response to disease outbreaks, and vaccination
A total of 144/281 (51.2%) adult ID specialists and 51/71 (71.8%) pediatric ID specialists participated in the survey
A survey was conducted over 11 days, from December 17–27 2020, targeting all adult and pediatric ID specialists (N = 392) in Korea
Summary
The current roles of infectious disease (ID) specialists are diverse, including diagnosis and treatment of various IDs, infection control, antibiotic stewardship, response to disease outbreaks, and vaccination. The social need for ID specialists is higher than ever because of the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant pathogens and recurrent outbreaks caused by emerging IDs. In particular, the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has affected more than 150 million people worldwide—including more than 128,000 people in Korea—since January 2020. The spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has affected more than 150 million people worldwide—including more than 128,000 people in Korea—since January 2020 This has created demand for ID specialists [1, 2]. The shortage of ID specialists can lead to unfavorable public health outcomes, including the emergence of more antibiotic-resistant bacteria [8, 9] and poor response to ID epidemics [10]. The shortage can lead to long work hours and low job satisfaction among ID specialists, leading to few applicants for ID specialist courses [11, 12]
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