The Infectious Diseases Specialist in the Hospital: An Expert Serving Quality of Care and Patient and Community Safety

The infectious disease (ID) specialist is a clinician who manages patients with bacterial, viral, fungal or parasitic infections, particularly the most complex, difficult-to-treat or emerging ones. Although most ID specialists consider their added value self-evident, this view is not universally shared, and the supporting evidence deserves wider recognition. This review summarizes the literature on the relevance and impact of the specialty in the hospital setting. Published studies suggest that ID consultation improves the diagnostic work-up, the appropriateness of antimicrobial therapy and the management of community-acquired, nosocomial and complex infections, with the timing of the intervention and continuous involvement in patient care appearing decisive. We also describe the competencies that define the specialty (transversality, organizational capacity and the role of anti-infective referent) and the recent developments reshaping its practice, including infection prevention and control, telemedicine, rapid diagnostics, nanomaterials and artificial intelligence. This synthesis is of particular relevance in Morocco, where the specialty has been established in the civilian sector for about two decades but remains nascent within the military health service.