C. diff Talk: Addressing the burdens of C. diff through research, advocacy and hope

C. diff Talk: Addressing the burdens of C. diff through research, advocacy and hope

When Kathy Bischoff retired, she had plans to live out her dreams to travel and settle down in the Ozark Mountains. That dream quickly turned into a nightmare when she experienced her first diagnosis of Clostridioides difficile.   Despite affecting nearly 500,000 Americans each year, very few patients hear of C. diff before their diagnosis. Bischoff herself faced seven reoccurrences of this life-threatening disease within two-and-a-half years. Now, she is a volunteer for the C Diff Foundation and shares her story to…

IDea Incubator Sponsor Spotlight: How BLUE KNIGHT™ Supports This Relationship-based Take on Health Equity  

IDea Incubator Sponsor Spotlight: How BLUE KNIGHT™ Supports This Relationship-based Take on Health Equity  

The IDSA Foundation in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JLABS (‘JLABS’) awarded $17,500 to this year’s three IDea Incubator finalists. As in previous years, finalists presented their ideas to the ID community, received feedback from industry peers and won funding to help advance their stand-out innovations.  New to the Foundation’s IDea Incubator competition this year – thanks to the Foundation’s collaboration with JLABS –…

COVID-19 stories from the front lines: Lessons learned from HIV and a diagnosis of COVID-19

COVID-19 stories from the front lines: Lessons learned from HIV and a diagnosis of COVID-19

The first role infectious diseases specialist Michael Saag, MD, FIDSA, played in the COVID-19 pandemic was that of a patient.   He had just arrived home in Alabama after a 20-hour car ride from New York City with his son, Harry, on March 12, 2020, when Harry spiked a fever. Within days, Dr. Saag also developed symptoms, and he and Harry both tested positive…

Celebrate ‘The Rise of the ID Hero’: New annual report underscores critical role of ID specialists

Celebrate ‘The Rise of the ID Hero’: New annual report underscores critical role of ID specialists

The COVID-19 pandemic may have put a spotlight on the pervasiveness of infectious diseases, but it also brought into sharp focus the resilience of ID specialists and the critical role they play in reducing the burdens of diseases that affect us all.  As we celebrate the IDSA Foundation’s 20th anniversary this year, we celebrate not…

A Message from Executive Director Stephen Peeler, CFRE: Thank you for helping us reach our Summer Match!

A Message from Executive Director Stephen Peeler, CFRE: Thank you for helping us reach our Summer Match!

The IDSA Foundation’s Summer of Science campaign has come to a close, and I’d like to thank each of you for your unwavering support. In 2020, we raised nearly $20,000 toward our match. This year, we wanted to double that number, and thanks to your support, we exceeded our goal!  Together we raised $50,000 to support life-saving research, fund the ID…

Vaccines 101: Celebrating Science’s Greatest Superpower

Vaccines 101: Celebrating Science’s Greatest Superpower

With diseases like polio and measles declared eliminated in the U.S. and smallpox eradicated worldwide, it’s hard to believe there was a time when these infections could be easily acquired. Many infections that once caused widespread illness and death are now simply anecdotes of the past, and at the heart of many of these successes are highly effective vaccines.  August is National Immunization Awareness Month, and in the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic, there has never…

Mentor and mentee reflect on importance of relationships within the ID community

Mentor and mentee reflect on importance of relationships within the ID community

No matter the stage in a person’s career, one thing remains clear: mentorship can be a critical segue into the field of infectious diseases. That’s why we feel it’s important to pair experienced ID professionals with trainees who are interested in the field of ID through our IDWeek Mentorship Program, which helps foster meaningful relationships for both mentees and mentors.  Mentees benefit by gleaning important insights from leaders in the field, while…

Reaching Underserved Populations through the HIVMA/IDSA Foundation Clinical Fellowship Program

Reaching Underserved Populations through the HIVMA/IDSA Foundation Clinical Fellowship Program

More than 38 million people worldwide were living with HIV in 2019. That same year, the patient demand for HIV care outpaced the number of new specialists entering the field. The need for HIV-trained physicians continues to increase to meet this demand.  With advancements in antiretroviral treatments, individuals living with HIV now have a longer…