Our Services
If you need sudden or ongoing treatment for an infectious disease — or you want to lower your risk of catching one — you’ll find the care and support you need right here in Central Virginia.
Our infectious disease team offers a wide range of services, including tests, treatments and prevention strategies. We provide inpatient care for people who are hospitalized with serious or life-threatening infections, and outpatient care to those who need help managing chronic conditions.
We encourage all patients seeking infectious disease care to have an established relationship with a primary care practice. Your primary care provider can help evaluate your needs and determine whether you should see a specialist.
Infectious Diseases We Treat
We offer expert care for nearly every type of infection, including contagious illnesses that are rare or hard to treat. Our areas of expertise include:
- Fever of unknown origin.
- Fungal infections such as candidiasis and aspergillosis.
- General infections that develop in one or more parts of the body. These include infections of the bones (osteomyelitis), heart (endocarditis) and spine (meningitis).
- HIV and AIDS.
- Hospital-acquired infections including ventilator-associated pneumonia and catheter-associated urinary tract infections.
- Mycobacterial infections such as tuberculosis and leprosy.
- Post-surgical infections that can occur in an incision or artificial joint implant.
- Severe diarrhea caused by Clostridium difficile (C. diff) infection.
- Sexually transmitted infections including chlamydia, human papillomavirus (HPV) and syphilis.
- Skin and soft tissue infections such as cellulitis, MRSA and staphylococcus (“staph”) infections.
- Tropical diseases including cholera, malaria and Dengue fever.
Learn how to refer a patient for infectious disease diagnosis or treatment.
Infectious Disease Treatments We Offer
The treatments you’ll need depend on several factors, including the type and severity of your infection. In collaboration with other VCU Health specialists, we offer:
- Medications. Prescription medicines are usually the first-line treatment for infectious diseases. They come in several forms, including pills, skin creams and IV infusions. Our doctors and pharmacists know which medicines are best at fighting the various germs that make people sick.
- Surgery. Infections that harm a bone, organ or skin may require surgery. We can remove an infected artificial joint, fix skin abscesses or perform bone grafts.
In addition to caring for adults of all ages, we help treat children with infectious diseases through Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU.
Specialty Clinics
We also offer preventive or ongoing infectious disease care to certain individuals. These include people who want to lower their risk of getting sick while travelling internationally, and those who have a higher risk of illness due to a weakened immune system.
We offer several specialty services, including our:
- HIV Clinic. We help people live well with HIV and reduce the risk of spreading it to others. In addition to prescribing medications that slow or stop disease progression, we can help you access services ranging from support groups and partner testing to clinical trials and counseling.
- Musculoskeletal Infectious Disease Clinic. This multispecialty clinic brings together VCU Health infectious disease specialists, orthopedic surgeons and wound care specialists.
- Transplant Infectious Disease Clinic. People who had an organ transplant must take strong medications called immunosuppressants. While these drugs help prevent organ rejection, they also lower the body’s ability to fight germs. Our infectious disease team works closely with specialists from Hume-Lee Transplant Center. Together we help transplant patients reduce their risk of infection and, if illness occurs, make sure they’re treated quickly and carefully.
- Travel and Tropical Medicine Clinic. We offer education and preventive care to people who plan to travel out of the country. We can look up current health risks affecting your destination, and provide tips for preventing illness. We also provide medication and vaccinations that help protect you against malaria and other tropical diseases.
We've Moved!
Effective August 5, 2024, all infectious disease clinic appointments are located at the Adult Outpatient Pavilion on the 13th floor.
To refer your patient, call (804) 828-6163 or submit our online referral form.
Parking
From the entrance on 10th Street, self-park for free or leave your vehicle at one of our valet stations (cost is $5).