Elective Years 1 and 2: Microbiology

12 hours

Dr Natalia Solomon at 780-407-7242 or nsolomon@ualberta.ca

You will be exposed to the diagnostic microbiology laboratory, liaison with the hospital wards when infection is diagnosed in the laboratory, collaboration with Infectious Diseases services as well as team approach (diagnostician/clinician/infection control practitioner/nursing and support staff) to infection.  Part of the elective will include observing mechanisms for handling of an outbreak, investigations in the community through participation in the activities of Provincial Laboratory of Public Health.

KNOWLEDGE TO GAIN:

• To understand the nature of medical Microbiology as a specialty as well as a basic means of diagnosing infectious diseases and their impact on population health.

SKILLS TO ACQUIRE:

• Familiarity with laboratory setup for diagnosis of infectious diseases at bench level.
• Principles of consultations and problem solving including clinicopathological correlations.
• Ability to relate individual vs social aspects of infectious diseases

ATTITUDES TO LEARN:

• Collaboration with allied health professionals, communication skills, understanding of team interactions and dynamics.