A tuberculosis hotline in Tyler: a Texas resource for primary health care providers for the control of infectious diseases

The Center for Pulmonary and Infectious Disease Control (CPIDC), located on the campus of The University of Texas Health Center in Tyler, manages a toll-free infectious disease consultation hotline advertised to public and private physicians and to health care agencies throughout the state. From January 1994 through December 1996, as part of a statewide initiative to curb an unprecedented increase in the incidence of tuberculosis observed since 1985, a concentrated effort was made to solicit health care providers for consultation requests that involved the diagnosis and management of tuberculosis, in particular, drug-resistant varieties. During that period, 3447 calls were made to the CPIDC by 1682 physicians and nurses. While most of the calls originated from 4 major urban areas plus health care facilities along the border, calls were received from more than half of all the counties in Texas. The value of providing an infectious disease consultation service, readily available, without charge, to all members of the health care community is discussed.