ID consult communication
How to Consult Infectious Disease
What to include when calling Infectious Disease about bacteremia, source control, resistant organisms, antibiotic duration, immunocompromised infection, or OPAT planning.
Lead With the Decision
What decision do you need ID to help with: syndrome, source control, organism significance, antibiotic choice, duration, OPAT, or diagnostic workup?
Not sure whether the consult is appropriate? Start with the Should I Consult ID? triage page, then return here before calling.
Before the call
Have These Details Ready
- The infection syndrome and suspected source, not just the culture result.
- Culture timeline with specimen site, collection date/time, number of positive bottles or sets, susceptibilities, and repeat cultures if obtained.
- Antibiotic timeline with start dates, stops, allergies, renal/hepatic constraints, prior antibiotics, and clinical response.
- Source-control status: drainage, line removal, hardware, abscess, obstruction, infected stone, valve/device concern, or pending procedure.
- Host factors: immunocompromise, transplant, neutropenia, prosthetic material, recent hospitalization, travel/exposure, and current acuity.
Exam focus
Document the Specialty-Relevant Exam
- Vitals, trajectory, source-focused exam, lines/devices/wounds, murmurs when bacteremia/endocarditis is a concern, and focal neurologic or back pain findings when relevant.
- Imaging, echo status, drainage/procedure status, and what cultures are pending.
- Renal function, liver tests, QT or drug-interaction constraints when relevant to antibiotic selection.
Phone or secure-chat script
A Cleaner ID Consult Message
I am calling about a [age]-year-old with [infection syndrome/source concern]. Cultures show [organism/specimen/date/bottle count/susceptibilities]. Antibiotics have been [timeline], and source control is [done/pending/not possible/unclear]. The patient is [improving/worsening/stable] with [host factors]. My question is [diagnosis/source control/antibiotic choice/duration/OPAT/workup].
Common pitfalls
Avoid Low-Signal Consults
- “Positive blood culture, please advise” without syndrome, source, organism, bottle count, and clinical status.
- Asking for duration before source control, susceptibilities, and diagnosis are reasonably framed.
- Using ID as a substitute for initial cultures, imaging, drainage planning, or local sepsis pathway steps.
Reference links
Useful Background
Educational tools only. SIC provides clinician-facing educational consult-triage references. SIC does not diagnose, treat, prevent, cure, or mitigate disease and is not a substitute for clinical judgment, local guidelines, institutional referral pathways, or recommendations from the relevant specialty department. See disclaimer and how SIC works.