Infectious Disease & Public Health
Whether you're an Avera patient, family member or employee, you benefit from our infectious disease and public health specialists who help prevent illnesses and promote best practices for a healthy community.
Expertise You Can Count On
Throughout the Avera system, our infectious disease and public health experts are available to:
- Ensure strict adherence to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines
- Help maintain a safe hospital and clinic environment for patients and visitors concerning infectious conditions and possible outbreaks
- Provide specialty in-person and virtual Avera eCARE™ telemedicine visits with patients and referring physicians concerning infectious conditions
- Serve as planning experts for possible scenarios involving potential outbreaks and epidemics
Count on the specialized care and oversight provided by our board-certified infectious disease physicians. As doctors of internal medicine with two or three additional years of dedicated infectious disease training, they’re experts in the diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases.
You’ll also find infection control nurses on staff at each of Avera’s six regional hospitals located throughout the Upper Midwest.
Infectious Disease Consultations
Avera’s dedicated infectious disease team works with your primary provider and other specialists, or in remote sites via telemedicine, to diagnosis and treat a variety of infections, including:
- Fevers of unknown origin
- Skin and soft tissue infections
- Bone and joint infections
- Pneumonias and respiratory infections
- Abdominal infections
- Gynecological infections
- HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases
- Infections due to multi-drug resistant organisms
- Infections in patients with decreased immune system such as transplant recipients
- Central nervous system infections
- Parasitic infections, zoonotic infections and tick-borne illnesses
- Fungal and viral infections
- Endocarditis and cardiovascular infections
Our team works with your primary physician and other medical specialists throughout Avera to ensure you receive the best care possible.
Telemedicine Virtual Visits
No matter where you receive care throughout the Avera region – at an Avera hospital, clinic, long-term care facility or even an intensive care unit (ICU) – you can receive personalized care from our infectious disease team via Avera eCARE telemedicine consultations.
You’ll find the guidance you need for diagnosis and treatment. You may also benefit from regular follow-up appointments to monitor your response to antibiotics including any adverse reactions and toxicities.
If you or a loved one is hospitalized, you can take advantage of urgent, same-day consultations. Otherwise, most outpatient telemedicine consultations are scheduled within a week of the request.
Travel Medicine for Trips Abroad
If you’re planning a trip abroad, schedule a travel medicine consultation with one of our infectious disease professionals. They’ll review your health history and travel plans, recommend the appropriate pre-travel vaccinations, write any necessary prescriptions and answer your travel-related health questions.
For added convenience, you can choose to receive your vaccinations the same day as your clinic appointment. You’ll also be given an International Certificate of Vaccination that shows which vaccinations you received.
Note: We recommend receiving necessary vaccinations as soon as possible to avoid any potential problems. Most vaccinations should be received at least two weeks before your departure.
For more information about traveling abroad – including travel notices on specific diseases and countries – check out the Center for Disease Control and Prevention Travelers’ Health.
Infection Control & Antibiotic Stewardship
With over 10 years of experience in helping hospitals develop successful infection control and antimicrobial stewardship programs, our infectious disease team offers best practices and recommendations for the use of antibiotics through our antibiotic stewardship program. This program aims to reduce resistance and adverse reactions to antibiotics, provide the best outcomes for patients and reduce costs.
Community Education About Infectious Diseases
Avera employees, visitors and community members throughout the Avera region also benefit from education about how to prevent infection and communicable disease through practices, such as:
- Frequent hand-washing
- Wearing of personal protective equipment (PPE)
- Influenza vaccinations (mandatory for all Avera employees)
Resources
For more information about infectious disease and public health, we recommend the following resources:
