We are thrilled that the 25th Infectious Diseases course returned to Salzburg this week! Since 1996, when the first course took place, 848 fellows from 55 countries have been educated by 101 esteemed faculty members. These numbers highlight the popularity and the global outreach of our educational initiative. Likewise, this week also paid tribute to the global scale of the program, with this being one of our most international courses ever: We hosted 39 fellows from 28 different countries and five continents. Amongst the group were not only doctors but also microbiologists, researchers, and scientists. Despite the participants stemming from such diverse backgrounds, they felt connected by their common interest in infectious diseases, which know no boundaries!
Eight specialists came together to educate the group of participants about the risks and treatments for infectious diseases around the world. The seminar, which took place from May 25 to 31, 2025, was led by course director Dr. Roy M. Gulick. Dr. Gulick is the Rochelle Belfer Professor in Medicine and Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Weill Cornell Medicine. An international faculty joined the expert. From Dr. Gulick’s own institution, Dr. Alexander Drelick, Dr. Jin-Young Han, Dr. Jamie Marino, and resident Dr. Lee Solomon Gottesdiener were present. Dr. Maryline Bonnet (TransVIHMI (IRD, Inserm & Montpellier University) and Prof. Philippe C. Morand (AP-HP Centre Academic Hospitals) traveled from France, while Dr. Andrea Schroll came from the Medical University of Innsbruck in Austria to join the cohort of teachers.
The course director is a long-time OMI supporter, with this being his 19th time teaching at our seminars. He explains in a heartfelt statement what truly makes our program so unique: “The program, now in its 25th year, brings together infectious diseases physicians from all over the world to spend a week together to learn about and discuss the latest developments in the field. Today, we face a world challenged by the continued spread of infectious diseases that is enhanced by factors such as travel, migration, and climate change. The program allows us to focus intensely on infectious diseases and to exchange and enhance the latest information and data. This leads directly to improvements in our patient care.”
What made this faculty cohort special was their international and multifaceted backgrounds: Dr. Gulick leads pivotal HIV and COVID-19 clinical trials. Dr. Bonnet has more than 20 years’ experience in operational and clinical research on tuberculosis and HIV-tuberculosis coinfection in Sub-Saharan Africa. Dr. Drelick and Dr. Gottesdiener specialize in the management of infections and antimicrobial resistance in immunocompromised hosts. Dr. Han is a pediatric infectious diseases physician, while Dr. Marino advances antimicrobial resistance and molecular diagnostics. Prof. Morand’s foci of interest are tuberculosis and mycobacterial infections, and Dr. Schroll’s interests include immunopathogenesis of infectious diseases, iron metabolism, and travel and altitude-related infections.
“We focused on a wide variety of issues in infectious diseases, including the presentation, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of common infections such as HIV, tuberculosis, and tick-borne diseases. We discussed specialized hosts for infections such as children, immunocompromised individuals, and travelers. We also reviewed a variety of interesting infectious diseases cases from all over the world,” explains Dr. Gulick.
The schedule was a blend of fascinating lectures, cases presented by the faculty, as well as two fellows’ case presentation sessions. The participants exchanged treatment options, learned from one another’s personal experiences, and even saw infections that were unknown to them before.
Temitope Obadadre, MD
OMI fellow from Nigeria
“There is no better feeling than being taught by the author of the guideline you consulted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Gulick’s presentation was informative, explaining how every recommendation was put together. It was amazing to learn more about long COVID-19 disease and the vaccine’s efficacy in COVID-19 prevention.”
Thi Hoai Thu Huynh, MD
OMI fellow from Vietnam
“Today’s lectures focused on tuberculosis, a topic of immense importance for a high-burden country like Vietnam. The sessions were incredibly detailed, and I appreciated the attention given to drug-resistant TB – an issue we face frequently at home. The case discussion allowed us to share local perspectives and real-life dilemmas.”
Karmen Jaaniso, MD
OMI fellow from Estonia
“My highlight of the week was Dr. Drelick’s interesting talk about cytomegalovirus. I really appreciated the clear overview of the different presentations of CMV and all the drugs that we can target it with. I will definitely keep a printout of these slides on my worktable for future reference.”
Rubens Alves, PhD
OMI fellow from Brazil
“This entire experience reminded me why I love working in science, why I chose to work on developing vaccines, and how important it is to connect with colleagues from around the world. Learning more about the clinical side of infectious diseases helped me understand how closely research and patient care are interconnected.”
