An HIV Medicine Fellowship is an advanced, specialized training program designed for physicians who have completed their core residency (typically in Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, or Infectious Diseases) and wish to become experts in the comprehensive, lifelong care of people living with HIV (PLWH).
This fellowship moves beyond foundational knowledge, creating specialists who are experts not just in antiviral therapy, but in the entire spectrum of medical, psychological, and social complexities associated with HIV.
The Core Mission: Comprehensive, Patient-Centered Care
The fellowship’s curriculum is built on several critical pillars:
1. Advanced Clinical Management:
Mastery of Antiretroviral Therapy (ART): Prescribing and managing complex drug regimens, navigating side effects, and addressing treatment failure or drug resistance.
Management of Co-infections & Comorbidities: Developing expertise in treating and preventing conditions like hepatitis B/C, tuberculosis, and the increasing burden of non-AIDS-defining illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and neurocognitive disorders in an aging HIV population.
Prevention Science: Becoming an expert in PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) for individuals at risk and PEP (Post-Exposure Prophylaxis) for emergency prevention.
2. Psychosocial and Holistic Support:
Fellows are trained to address the human dimensions of HIV that are critical to successful outcomes:
Mental Health: Screening for and managing the high rates of depression, anxiety, trauma, and substance use disorders.
Stigma Reduction: Understanding the profound impact of stigma and developing skills to create a safe, affirming, and non-judgmental clinical environment for all patients, particularly those from marginalized communities (LGBTQ+ individuals, people who inject drugs, sex workers, incarcerated persons).
Addressing Social Determinants of Health: Learning to connect patients with resources for housing, food security, transportation, and legal aid, recognizing that these factors are often the primary barriers to consistent care.
The Training Environment: Learning by Doing
Fellows train in a variety of settings to gain a well-rounded perspective:
Specialized HIV Outpatient Clinics: The hub for long-term management, where they learn to build trusting patient relationships and manage HIV as a chronic condition.
Inpatient Hospital Services: Caring for patients with advanced HIV and complex, acute medical issues.
Community Health Centers & Public Health Clinics: Working with underserved populations and understanding the realities of providing care outside of academic medical centers.
Beyond the Clinic: Leadership, Research, and Advocacy
This fellowship prepares physicians to be leaders, not just clinicians. This includes:
Public Health Policy: Understanding how to develop, analyze, and implement policies that expand access to care and prevention tools.
Community Advocacy: Partnering with community-based organizations to promote testing, education, and destigmatization.
Research: Fellows are actively involved in research projects, contributing to advancements in areas like:
Long-acting injectable antiretrovirals
Strategies for an HIV cure
Implementation science to improve care delivery
Novel treatments for complications
The Impact: Why This Specialty Matters
Graduates of this fellowship are equipped to:
Lead multidisciplinary HIV care teams in various settings.
Shape public health initiatives at the local, national, and global level.
Advance the field through clinical research and innovation.
Provide exemplary, compassionate, and evidence-based care that transforms patient outcomes.
In essence, an HIV Medicine Fellowship creates expert physician-leaders who are essential to achieving the goal of ending the HIV epidemic through superior clinical care, groundbreaking research, and unwavering advocacy.
