Division of Infectious Diseases
The Division of Infectious Diseases is part of the Department of Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. We are a group of academic physicians, allied health professionals and nurse practitioners specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases and related disorders.
We also offer a fellowship training program to those seeking a career in Infectious Diseases with two pathways: basic laboratory research and clinical investigation.
ID Faculty Spotlight
Cara Varley, MD, MPH
Tell us a little about your time at OHSU and your interests in ID?
I have spent over a decade of my clinical training and research at OHSU and was thrilled to join the ID faculty after my fellowship. I love our division and could not ask for better colleagues. I’m excited every day to collaborate on new projects and work with people who have different areas of expertise.
What are you currently working on?
I currently see patients in the Oregon Mycobacterial Clinic and on the inpatient consult service. My main research focus is development and evaluation of outcome measures for pulmonary Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) infections. Some of my other recent projects have looked at improving routine inpatient screening, treatment and prevention of HIV, hepatitis, and sexually transmitted infections, incorporating structural determinants of health in medical education, and supporting some of the great research projects led by our fellows. I also have the privilege of mentoring some fantastic medical and MPH students with their research projects and look forward to developing a Trainee Research Program within the ID Division.
What about outside of work?
Outside of work, I enjoy photography, crafting, random home remodel projects (typically involving some shade of green), live music, eating and drinking my way through Portland, traveling (pre-COVID19) and remote OR beach roadtrips (post-COVID19) with my partner and two dogs, Koda and Pepper.
What do you like about living in Portland?
I grew up in the desert and fell in love with the forests and green of the PNW. Portland and the surrounding areas have a huge variety of year-round activities, so I am continuously entertained.
Services
The Division of Infectious Diseases clinic offers these services and more to those referred by a health care professional:
- Consultation and treatment for adults with infectious diseases
- Consultation and treatment for transplant recipients and other immunocompromised hosts with infection
- Consultation and treatment of orthopedic and neurosurgery infections in multidisciplinary surgical-ID clinics
- Management of patients on home IV antibiotics with orthopedic and neurosurgery infections
A message from the Division
We in the Division of Infectious Diseases are committed to taking concrete steps to foster diversity, equity, and inclusion. We are saddened, horrified, angered, and galvanized by the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, among the countless others driven by racism. These, along with the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Black, Indigenous, Latino/LatinX, and other people of color, have compelled us to heighten our focus on structural racism, disparities, and inequities, and their relation to our clinical, research, and educational missions. We acknowledge the systemic failures that have brought us to this point and that it is our responsibility to develop and implement long-overdue measures aimed at correcting those failures.
As a Division, we stand against racism in any form and we stand with those in our community who have suffered the effects of marginalization and discrimination. With intention, we will work to ensure that our clinical, educational, and research activities reflect the values of diversity, inclusion, and equity we espouse. We pledge to do our fullest in support of OHSU’s goal of combatting structural racism and becoming an anti-racist institution (OHSU standing up against structural racism). We support the response to the death of George Floyd from the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and the HIV Medical Association (HIVMA) (IDSA/HIVMA statement) that structural changes, including within the healthcare system, are urgently needed to eliminate racism and health disparities.
Over the coming months, we will develop and share our specific plans to those ends. Through this work, we will add our voice to the larger effort of moving towards a more equitable and just society.