Infectious diseases: Registrar Interview Questions Australia

The infectious diseases questions that sit on top of the specialty training core: clinical scenarios, the system and governance questions specific to the specialty, and presentation titles.

Updated 7 November 2026

The structures these questions are marked on

  • CAMP Clinical experience, Academic work including audit, research and teaching, Management and leadership roles, Personal: who you are as a colleague and what you will find hard. For the CV walkthrough. Full guide →
  • SAFER See the patient, Assess systematically with ABCDE, Fix what you can and decide, Escalate with a clear request in SBAR or ISBAR, Review: the patient told, the handover, the documentation and what you would do if the first plan failed. Full guide →
  • The What it is in a sentence, Why it matters with a fact, What it means for this organisation and specialty, What I would do at my level and how I would measure it. Full guide →

Motivation

Evidence of commitment over enthusiasm: rotations, courses, audits, exams sat. Know the programme's stages, exams and rural requirements. Say what you would bring to a rural site, not just that you are willing to go.

  1. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the head of departmentCAMP

    Why infectious diseases, and why this unit?

    Evidence: the terms, the cases, the research, the audit. Then this unit: its subspecialty strengths, its research and its catchment, in terms that show homework.

  2. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the staff specialist colleagueCAMP

    What do you know about advanced training in infectious diseases, its requirements and the research project?

    The length, the core and elective years, the procedural or clinic requirements, the research project and the assessments. Two accurate sentences, then what will be hardest.

Clinical scenario

Systematic assessment, treat what you can, escalate early and clearly even when the consultant is distant, use retrieval and telehealth where they apply, and say what you would do afterwards. A safe answer that asks for help beats a clever one that does not.

  1. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the head of departmentSAFER

    A traveller returns febrile from a malaria area. What do you do?

    Malaria until proven otherwise: the films repeated, severity assessed, treatment by severity, and the public health notification if needed.

  2. Asked in most interviewsUsually asked by the staff specialist colleagueSAFER

    A patient has Staphylococcus aureus in the blood cultures. What is your approach?

    The source sought, the echo, the duration of intravenous therapy, line removal, and repeat cultures.

  3. Often askedUsually asked by the head of departmentSAFER

    The hospital has a cluster of a resistant organism on one ward. What is your role?

    Infection control, screening, the epidemiology, antimicrobial stewardship, and communication with the ward and the executive.

  4. Often askedUsually asked by the staff specialist colleagueSAFER

    A clinician wants to use a broad spectrum antibiotic you think is unnecessary. How do you handle it?

    The reasoning, the evidence and the patient's risk, an alternative offered, and the relationship kept.

System knowledge

Know the programme's requirements in detail. Name three current pressures and link each to your specialty. Be able to explain clinical governance and the standards most relevant to your work in a sentence each.

  1. Often askedUsually asked by the head of departmentSYSTEM

    How should antimicrobial stewardship work across this district, including rural sites?

    The guidelines, restricted antibiotics, telehealth advice, audit, and education.

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