DELMAR — More physicians may have the chance to lay roots in a local hospital system as TidalHealth begins recruiting graduate level students for a new infectious disease fellowship.
Led by Dr. Areej Khan, the program trains on critical skills needed for doctors seeking this specialty with a unique East Coast twist.
“In this specific area, we have a large number of underserved Latin Americans. We deal with a lot of HIV, hepatitis and other infectious diseases and handling those cases as a fellow makes the specialty exciting,” Khan told the Delaware Business Times. “It’s the demographic we have here. We also have a lot of water-based infections and tick-borne illnesses they may not see as much in other states.”
TidalHealth currently boasts over 300 providers with 24 specialties and 30 locations which span the western Sussex County area of Delaware and Eastern Shore Maryland. Other than its new offering of the infectious disease fellowship, its graduate medical fellowship programs include specialties such as cardiovascular disease and gastroenterology. TidalHealth also has residency programs in anesthesiology, family medicine, general surgery and internal medicine.
The team has also connected with other local institutions such as Nemours to give fellows pediatric experience, as well as other skills including possible rotations in critical care, orthopedics, wound care and sexually transmitted infection screenings depending on interests.
Khan added that the number of pathogens, or the organism or substance that causes disease, has increased over the years. A study from the peer-reviewed journal Nature Climate Change also showcased research from scientists around the globe finding that the increase has been exacerbated by climate change, posing unique problems in the Delmarva region and making the new infectious disease fellowship a critical program for TidalHealth to add to its toolbox.
Khan’s hopes the mixture of complex cases, research capabilities and geographic location combines to create a perfect storm for the right physicians of which TidalHealth will accept on per fellowship, according to its website.
“The goal is to integrate them within our system by giving them correct training when they come here and see the excellent, complex cases. They’ll grow to have friends in the area, learn to work with their colleagues and want to continue seeing the patients they’re with,” she said. “It’s critical that we offer this program here for doctors who want to learn more.”
