Spotlight On The Infectious Diseases Podcast Over 15 Years Old That Just Added New Mobile Streaming Options

In this article the story of an infectious diseases podcasts is discussed – IDpodcasts.

Authored By: Richard L Oehler, MD

Co-founder and Webmaster of ID Podcasts Platforms

University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine, Tampa, FL, USA

Article Posted 19 June 2023

In 2007, the University of South Florida Division of Infectious Diseases (ID) was looking for a way to archive and webcast live medical presentations given by its ID faculty.  It was the dawn of the online streaming era, and platforms such as YouTube, acquired by Google only a year earlier (2006), were brand new.  When people thought about online web streaming in those days, they tended to think about cute cat videos and biting toddlers.

Adopting the name, “IDPodcasts,” the project (the term “podcast” was coined by a BBC journalist in 2004) sought to adapt infectious diseases presentations to a format recently popularized by the popular iPod music player of the 2000’s. ID Podcasts’ first podcast, “A Tour of the London Museum of Science,” was posted in June 2007.  

From there, our content grew rapidly – we commemorated our 100^th podcast in November 2009, and our first early smartphone apps were released in May 2010.   A YouTube channel was inaugurated in 2012 and a second-generation website followed in 2017.  We celebrated our 15^th anniversary in 2022. This year, a new 3^rd generation multimedia streaming app was released for IOS devices, with an Android app soon to follow.

Today, ID Podcasts hosts hundreds of hours of infectious diseases presentations from more than ninety ID fellow and faculty authors, mostly from University of South Florida-affiliated presenters and select outside guest contributors. The site’s content is provided as an educational presentation, not the more recent concept of an interactive interview program, a la “the Joe Rogan experience,” the excellent “Febrile podcast,” or “Pod Save America.” Its YouTube channel hosts more than 300 presentations, has tens of thousands of subscribers from nearly 100 countries, and is approaching 2 million lifetime views.  

ID Podcasts’ educational content can be accessed in multiple ways, including its Apple podcast series, YouTube Channel, and website (https://idpodcasts.net).  But for iPhone users, the IOS IDPodcasts app may offer the best smartphone experience.  

After downloading the program from the IOS App Store, it opens to the “latest” tab featuring recent infectious diseases related stories linked to the University of Minnesota’s CIDRAP (Center for Infectious Diseases Research and Policy), its ID news-content resource. A second tab features the newest uploaded podcast presentations. Recently uploaded podcasts to the platform at the time of this review included presentations on “HIV: Test and Treat,” “Updates on Tuberculosis,” and “Managing Beta-lactam Allergies.”

With more than 300 presentations available online, ID Podcasts excels at having a comprehensive database of content in multiple categories of infectious diseases. Category Search allows the user to pull up ID presentations in more than 45 groups, such as “bacterial Infections,” “HIV/AIDS,” and sexually transmitted diseases.” 

There is an extensive collection of content related to antimicrobial stewardship on the site, including presentations on “Antibiotic stewardship and superbugs,” Social stewardship,” “Antibiotics: Just in Case,” and “Antibiotic stewardship in oncologic care.” Multiple presentations can also be accessed on pharmacology, adverse drug reactions, pharmacotherapeutics, and antimicrobial resistance mechanisms. 

The new IOS app includes features that make viewing content on a smartphone more enjoyable.  These include the ability to designate favorites, an audio-only playlist for in-car streaming, background audio play, picture-in-picture (PIP) play, master search capability, Airplay/screen mirroring for playback on a large monitor, and regularly updated infectious diseases news content.  The app works equally well on an iPad, especially in portrait orientation. Listening and learning while driving has become incredibly accessible, given its compatibility with Apple CarPlay. 

ID Podcasts’ platforms are entirely self-supported by USF’s Morsani College of Medicin, USF Health, and Tampa General Hospital. The app and website are accessible to all; no paywall, subscription or user fees are requested. 

We are really delighted to be able to share some information about our site to IDstewardship.com’s audience.  Thanks to the IDstewardship team for allowing us to share this information.

The ID Podcasts IOS app features ID news related content, and a comprehensive catalogue of ID presentations across more than 40 categories with extensive search features.

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