Infectious Diseases
We care for patients with or at risk of contracting an infectious disease.
What we do
We provide inpatient, outpatient and ambulatory services for patients who have been diagnosed with an infectious disease or who are at risk of an infectious disease (ID).
The clinic offers support to, and reviews community patients who are under the care of Infectious Diseases Medical staff.
Services include:
- outpatient clinical consultations for diagnosis and management
- inpatient consultations
- inpatient admission
- ambulatory outpatient intravenous antibiotic management including device management, ensuring patients can stay out of hospital and receive treatment at home.
We also provide services to patients from rural and remote areas.
Conditions treated by our service include:
- newly diagnosed HIV, requiring admission or symptomatic HIV infection
- returned overseas travellers with fever
- malaria
- viral hepatitis
- hepatitis B, hepatitis C
- patients on IV antibiotics
- symptomatic infections, such as UTI with multi-resistant organisms.
Where to find us
Outpatient clinic, Level 3 (ground floor), Royal Adelaide Hospital.
Check appointment information and screens on arrival at the RAH, for the specific location.
Who we are
Consultants
- Dr Renjy Nelson - Head of Unit
You need a referral from a GP or medical practitioner to access this service.
Once your referral has been received it will be triaged according to clinical urgency.
If your referral is accepted, you will either:
- receive a letter, phone call or text message confirming your appointment time, date and location
- receive a letter confirming you have been waitlisted for an appointment.
If the referral is declined, your GP or referring medical practitioner will be notified.
Outpatient services
Find out information about specialist outpatient appointments, how to be referred, plus information when attending an outpatient clinic.
Your outpatient appointment
Contact us to:
- change your appointment time
- cancel your appointment
- find out triage status
- general outpatient enquiries.
If you need to cancel or change your appointment time, let us know as soon as possible.
We accept GP and specialist referrals to this service.
To ensure timely triage, include all demographic and clinical details.
The service triages referrals according to clinical urgency.
Urgent and same day referrals
Patients who are having an medical emergency and require immediate assessment should be sent directly to the emergency department.
Emergency conditions include:
- returned travellers with fever
- newly diagnosed HIV requiring admission
- malaria.
Same day referrals
Where consultation is 'same day' urgent, phone the infectious diseases registrar via the RAH switchboard to discuss the patient. A follow up referral marked urgent should then be faxed.
The RAH has a rapid assessment (RASS) clinic for relevant clinically urgent matters. IDC staff coordinate this style of rapid appointment with the patient or referrer if required.
Referral information
Include in the referral as much information as possible including:
- history of onset of condition
- duration of symptoms
- past medical and surgical history
- current medication list, and recent treatment or changes
- records of vaccination /immune status where relevant such as pneumovax, influenza, hepatitis A, hepatitis B
- travellers – destination travelled, duration, vaccinations prior to travel and malaria prophylaxis where relevant
- risk factors – IV drug use, sexual orientation and behavioural risk, type of occupational exposure
- reports of relevant recent investigations, such as blood tests, imaging studies.
For recommended tests prior to review for HIV/viral hepatitis, see clinical information sheets below:
Viral hepatitis Central Adelaide Infectious Diseases outpatients (PDF 111KB) FROM 2014 NEEDS UPDATING
HIV Central Adelaide Infectious Diseases outpatients (PDF 204KB) FROM 2014 NEEDS UPDATING
Non-urgent referrals will be allocated to the next available appointment. The waiting time for an appointment will vary and is dependent on the demand for this service and medical urgency.
Should changes occur to a patient’s medical condition during the waiting time for an appointment, referrers should send updated clinical information.
Clinical information sheets
- HIV Central Adelaide Infectious Diseases outpatients - FROM 2014
- HIV: who to test Central Adelaide Infectious Diseases outpatients - FROM 2014
- HIV: giving a positive result Central Adelaide Infectious Diseases outpatients - FROM 2014
- Viral hepatitis Central Adelaide Infectious Diseases outpatients - FROM 2014