Combined UTMB Dermatology/Pediatrics Residency No Longer Accepting Applicants

The combined dermatology/pediatric residency program that was initiated in 2003 is being phased out at UTMB and will not be offering any new first year positions in the upcoming 2009 NRMP. Vicki Carr, MD was the first physician to complete this 5 year long program at UTMB in 2008. The remaining residents in the combined dermatology/pediatrics training program at UTMB are Cameron Coury, MD and John Stephens, MD.

UTMB Austin Names First Dermatology Resident

The new dermatology residency program in Austin has selected Clifton Hall, MD as their first dermatology resident. Dr. Hall is currently the clinical dermatology fellow. He graduated from the University of Utah School of Medicine. Plans are in place to facilitate educational interactions with the UTMB Galveston Dermatology Residency Program via joint conferencing. Congratulations to Dr. Hall and the new Austin Dermatology Residency Program!

AAD Diversity Mentorship Program Applications due January 31, 2009

The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) is sponsoring this well-regarded program for medical students at all levels. Previous UTMB medical students have participated and found it very worthwhile. For more information about this successful program and an application please go to http://www.aad.org/education/students/students.html

UTMB Poster Presentation Awarded Honorable Mention at the 2008 American Society of Dermatopathology Annual Meeting

Congratulations to senior UTMB medical student Leslie Scroggins for receiving Honorable Mention for her original dermatopathology poster, "The role of matrix metalloproteinases and their inhibitors in neprhogenic systemic fibrosis" that was presented in San Francisco last week at the 2008 American Society of Dermatopathology Annual Meeting. Ms. Scroggins was on an away dermatology rotation at UCSF during the meeting and was active in the poster presentation. Her co-authors were Dr. Catherine McNeese (former UTMB dermatopathology fellow) and her UTMB faculty mentor, Dr. Brent Kelly.

"Dermatainment" Poster Accepted for 2009 American Academy of Dermatology Meeting (San Francisco)

Congratulations to Conner Chan, MD (former UTMB DIG member) and Richard Wagner, MD, UTMB Professor of Dermatology, for their poster acceptance to the upcoming 2009 meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology in San Francisco. The title of their poster is, "'Dermatainment': Teaching Medical Students About Skin Diseases Using Depictions in Modern Films." It will be displayed in the "Education and Community Service" category (P1803)

Dermatology Film Class Featured in UTMB Magazine

The 2008 Summer/Fall issue of UTMB Magazine has published an article by Jim Kelly entitled, "Film school" about UTMB's new Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema course on page 3. The course director, Dr. Richard Wagner, is quoted as saying this course "reaches medical students who have little previous exposure to the wide spectrum of skin diseases and who might otherwise tend to view skin diseases as trivial and unimportant. Through cinema, students vicariously experience the profound impact that different skin diseases have on people and society. Viewing the films and discussing them with classmates and faculty helps them develop deeper knowledge, insight and empathy, all of which enrich their medical education."

After a brief class interruption during Period 4 due to Hurricane Ike, this popular UTMB class will resume again on Monday, October 20th (Period 5).

McCullough Building Reopens Monday, October 13, 2008

The Department of Dermatology has learned that its administrative offices in the McCullough Building will reopen on Monday, 10/13/08. This is great timing for the two "Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema" courses (BSHS selective DERU-4051 and elective DERU-4007) that will meet in the 4th floor McCullough dermatology conference room for the first class of Period 5 on October 20 from 10 a.m. to noon. The UTMB dermatopathology lab located in McCullough could reopen soon. It is possible that the UHC (campus dermatology clinical operations) could reopen in two more weeks, although it is still not known if the elevators will be working by then. This is all great news because the UTMB dermatology residency program could restart using UTMB educational and clinical facilities as soon as November.

100%!

All four former UTMB residents who completed dermatology or dermatology/pediatrics training passed the 2008 American Board of Dermatology Certifying Examination and are now Diplomates of the American Board of Dermatology. In addition, our UTMB dermatopathology fellow, Alma C. Berlingeri-Ramos, MD, who previously completed dermatology training at the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine (San Juan) in 2008 also passed. This is the 8th consecutive year that UTMB Dermatology residency graduates have all passed their boards on their first attempt. Congratulations to everyone for this excellent academic and personal achievement!

Dermatology

Andy Perri, MD (private practice, Conroe, Texas and Clinical Assistant Professor and Director, Hair Transplantation Clinic, The University of Texas Medical Branch)

Mark Ramirez, MD (private practice, San Angelo, Texas)

Karan Sra, MD (private practice, Houston, Texas)

Pediatric Dermatology

Vicki Carr, MD (private practice, Tomball, Texas)

Austin Approved for Dermatology Residency

The Dermatology Residency Review Committee has approved a new dermatology residency in Austin, Texas for one position each year. It will probably accept the first PGY-2 dermatology resident for training beginning in
July 2009. Congratulations to Drs. Reichenberg, Diven and Raimer for having the vision that made this possible!

Skin Disease Depicted in Cinema back for Period 5 (Monday, October 20, 2008 through Friday, November 14, 2008).

Third and fourth year UTMB medical students will be able to take either DERU-4007 (elective) or DERU-4051 (senior BSHS selective) following the recent academic schedule disruption at UTMB due to Hurricane Ike. Please schedule either class through Dr. J. Rowen. Students planning on taking either of these courses should also contact Dr. Wagner ( rfwagner@utmb.edu ) directly through email prior to Monday, October 20, 2008, the first day of class to find out the location of the first class meeting .

Hurricane Ike

The UTMB main campus in Galveston has been temporarily closed to UTMB and visiting medical students during cleanup from Hurricane Ike. Any Period 4 dermatology electives/selectives scheduled at UTMB in Galveston should be rescheduled at an off-island location, including Austin. For UTMB 3rd and 4th year students, please contact
Dr. J. Rowen for rescheduling. As soon as more information becomes available about UTMB reopening for medical students at UTMB in Galveston, another announcement will be posted.

UTMB Medical Student, Dermatology Resident and Dermatology Faculty Publish Case Report

Congratulations to first author senior medical student Jennifer Vickers, second year dermatology resident Ryan Matherne, MD and Brent Kelly, MD (UTMB dermatology faculty dermatopathologist) for their extremely interesting case report entitled, "Acute localized exanthematous pustulosis: a cutaneous drug reaction in a dental setting." The article was published in the September 2008 issue of The Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA 2008;139(9):1200-1203). Their coauthor was Dr. Elgene Mainous, Professor and Chief of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at UTMB.

Senior UTMB Medical Student to Present Research at National Meeting

Mara Dacso's abstract entitled, "Evaluation of Multi-Drug Therapy in the USA Using Daily Rifampin" for Hansen's Disease has been accepted as a poster presentation at the upcoming 2009 American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in New Orleans, LA. Her co-authors are Dr. Richard Scollard from the National Hansen's Disease Program (Baton Rouge, LA) and Dr. Erica Kelly (UTMB Department of Dermatology, Galveston, TX). The abstract is based in part on Mara's UTMB Dermatology Honors Research Thesis. The UTMB DIG congratulates Mara for her excellent research in this important cutaneous infectious disease area.

UTMB Presentations at the Upcoming 2008 American Society of Dermatopathology Annual Meeting

From Dr. Wagner:

Second year dermatology resident Ryan Matherne and 4th year medical student Leslie Scroggins have received notification that their abstracts have both been accepted for poster presentation in San Francisco this October. Dr. Matherne will be presenting, "Spindle cells in nephrogenic systemic fibrosis do not differentiate into myofibroblasts," while co-author Dr. Catherine McNeese (former UTMB dermatopathology fellow) will present on findings from Leslie's UTMB Dermatology Research Honors Program thesis entitled, "The role of matrix metalloproteinases and their inhibitors in nephrogenic systemic fibrosis." Dr. Brent Kelly (UTMB Dermatopathology) mentored these two research projects. Congratulations to all of them for their exciting new accomplishments!

DIG Member Has Poster Accepted to 2009 AAD Meeting

Congratulations are in order for Jennifer Vickers, a 4th year medical student at UTMB. Her original research entitled, "Pimple Popper, MD: Why Seinfeld is Consequential to Dermatology" has been accepted as a 2009 poster presentation (P901) at the 67th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) in San Francisco, California under the category of Art History and Humanities of Dermatology. All abstracts sent for consideration to this meeting are subject to blinded peer-review and must receive a cutoff score for inclusion in the program. It is excellent for a medical student to have a poster accepted to this meeting. Ms. Vickers collaborators on this research were Dr. Richard Wagner (dermatology) and Tatsuo Uchida (biostatistics).

DIG Meeting Recap, 9-2-08

Tonight we had a great showing for our first meeting. Thanks to the dermatology residents for all of the great advice they shared with us. We also summarized the many events that DIG annually participates in and discussed a possibility for dues which would include a DIG t-shirt. More info on this to come.

First DIG Meeting

September 2, 2008
5:00 PM
4.112 McCullough

A panel will be held by UTMB Dermatology residents to answer all your questions about getting involved in dermatology. Everyone is welcome!

"Majoring" in Dermatology at UTMB

Unlike most undergraduate colleges and universities, UTMB really does not have "majors" for medical students. At least not yet! However, UTMB students have ample opportunities to explore dermatology while in medical school, during every year of their medical studies. A compendium of UTMB sponsored activities are as follows:

UTMB Research Honors Program in Dermatology: This is a highly successful program initiated in 2001. Dr. Renee Solis Snyder ( www.snyderma.com ) , now in dermatology practice in Austin, Texas, was the first UTMB medical student to complete this program in the Department of Dermatology. UTMB medical students can initiate a dermatology research project beginning in their first year of medical school. The deadline for submitting the research project for UTMB Committee Approval is December 31 of the 3rd year of medical school, but the deadline has been extended on occasion for projects that still can be completed in the allowed timeframe. Candidates for UTMB’s Honors Program must meet stringent criteria for selection by an institutional committee composed of basic and clinical researchers in multiple disciplines. Our Dermatology Honors Program is designed to engage non-PhD medical students in a formal comprehensive original research experience by encouraging them to become the PI on a research project of their own design. Those successfully completing this rigorous program gain sophistication and important skills in critical literature review, study design, regulatory issues related to research, data analysis, and scientific presentation/writing. It is the only pathway for UTMB medical students to earn an “honors” designation on their diploma for research and is independent of AOA selection. Students are required to write a thesis and defend it to their ad hoc committee members by March of their senior year. As of June 2008, 23 UTMB medical students have completed the Honors Research Program in Dermatology. Student Honors Program research is frequently presented at professional meetings and peer-reviewed publication usually follows. In the past, Drs. Dayna Diven, Erica Kelly, Brent Kelly and Richard Wagner have successfully mentored UTMB medical students on these dermatology projects. More detailed information about this unique program is available at http://dermatology.cdlib.org/124/commentary/student/wagner.html

National Student Research Forum: Since 1959, UTMB has sponsored the National Student Research Forum each Spring in Galveston. Students from the US and around the world participate in oral and poster research presentations. Accepted abstracts are published in a program book, there is a keynote speaker and an awards banquet to honor all of the participants. The UTMB Department of Dermatology sponsors awards for the best oral and poster presentations about dermatology. Any UTMB medical student, resident or fellow is eligible to participate. The next abstract deadline is January 23, 2009. Further information is available at http://www.utmb.edu/nsrf/

Medical Student Summer Research Program (MSSRP): During the break between the first and second year of medical school, UTMB sponsors medical students doing research projects in dermatology. Students receive a stipend and academic elective credit. Students are expected to present their research at a poster session that is held on campus. UTMB sponsors awards in several categories to recognize the best student work.

Department of Dermatology Clinical Rotations for 1st Year Medical Students: The UTMB Department of Dermatology offers 4 first year medical students the opportunity to learn about clinical dermatology during 4 week long rotations during the summer break between the first and second year of medical school. There is tremendous demand for this program, and in the past it has been offered on a "first-come, first serve" signup. However, in the future positions may be determined by a lottery.

American Academy of Dermatology Diversity Mentorship Program: The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) sponsors this program for ethnically and socio-economically diverse medical students years 1-4. Students can work with sponsoring dermatologists anywhere in the US. There is a $1500 stipend. In the past, UTMB faculty Drs. Sharon Raimer and Richard Wagner have sponsored students wanting to study in Galveston. More information about this program is available at http://www.aad.org/education/students/_doc/DiveristyMentorshipProgApplication11-06.doc

Medical Student Selectives and Electives for 3rd and 4th year Medical Students: UTMB offers medical students a wide variety of electives and selectives. All of the electives but none of the selectives are available to visiting 4th year medical students on a space available basis. UTMB allows its own 3rd year medical students to take electives as space and their schedule allows. Each senior UTMB student must complete two selectives for graduation (BSHS and ACS), and both types are offered through the dermatology department. The BSHS (Basic Science Humanities Selective) writing requirement can be met through DERU-4004 Dermatologic Basic Science Selective. For this selective a study proposal must be presented to a dermatology faculty mentor and approved at least one month prior to the scheduled elective. Often students will write a case report with emphasis on the basic science aspects of skin disease in this course or a literature review article related to the basic science of a selected skin disease. Medical Students participating in the Dermatology Honor Research Program can also receive credit for the BSHS requirement. Another way to meet the UTMB BSHS selective requirement is for students to take DERU-4051 (Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema). The Ambulatory Care Selective (ACS) senior graduation requirement selective can be met through either DERU-4005 or DERU-4049 More information is available at http://ar.utmb.edu/ACSelectives/blist.asp?dc=der

The UTMB Dermatology Department also offers electives in Clinical Dermatology, Dermatopathology, Dermatologic Surgery, Research, History of Dermatology, Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema, and Skin Diseases in Modern World Literature. An Acting Internship in Dermatology is also offered. Some electives are also available in Austin. For additional information, please see http://ar.utmb.edu/04-05review/blist.asp?dc=der

Departmental Dermatology Awards: Currently the UTMB Department of Dermatology sponsors in 4 award programs. The Thomas B. Freese Award for Overall Excellence in Dermatology and the Edgar B. Smith Endowed Scholarship Award for Excellent Dermatology Research by a Medical Student are usually awarded to outstanding senior medical students. Both third and fourth year medical students are eligible for the Best Original Essay for "Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema" course award (DERU-4007 and DERU-4051) and the Beiersdorf History of Dermatology Award (best original research for DERU-4008).

American Academy of Dermatology Publishes Online Medical Student Core Curriculum

The UTMB DIG has learned that the American Academy of Dermatology has published a core curriculum for medical students in both the basic and clinical areas. The UTMB Department of Dermatology is now recommending it as a free resource for all rotating medical students. It is available at http://www.aad.org/education/students/core.html

Volunteers Needed for New Student Organization Fair

DIG will have an information table at the New Student Orientation Organization Fair at the Library Plaza this Wednesday, Aug 20th. If you are able to help with set up from 2:30 to 3:00 (basically set out a table and put up a sign) or if you can give out information from 3:30 to 4:30, please contact Leslie (lkscrogg@utmb.edu). Thanks!

Good luck to Maria I. Colome, MD in her new faculty position at UT-Houston

The DIG has learned that Friday was Dr. Colome's last day at UTMB. Dr. Colome first came to UTMB as a dermatopathology fellow, training under Dr. Ramon Sanchez. Following a dermatopathology position at MD Anderson, Dr. Colome returned to UTMB as the faculty dermatopathologist and concurrently completed an internship in family medicine that was followed by a residency in dermatology. Dr. Colome is highly regarded professionally as an internationally recognized dermatopathologist and dermatologist, and at UTMB she was always an excellent teacher for medical students and dermatology residents. She often served as an extremely valued ad hoc faculty committee member for multiple UTMB Dermatology Honors Research Program Projects by UTMB medical students. We will all miss interacting with her in the clinic and at the microscope in Galveston, and we wish her well at her new position in the Department of Dermatology at the UT-Houston with Dr. Ron Rapini.
Dr. Colome plans to continue the successful annual UTMB Dermatopathology review course at UTMB.

Congratulations Dr. Sharon Raimer

This May, Dr. Sharon Raimer, the UTMB Department of Dermatology Chair, was elected the President of the Texas Dermatological Society (TDS). The immediate past TDS President was Dr. Dan McCoy (a UTMB dermatology residency program graduate).

UTMB Dermatology Resident Recognized at TDS Meeting

Dr. Julie Fridlington was awarded 3rd prize for her recent podium presentation at the 2008 Annual Spring meeting of the Texas Dermatological Society that was held in San Antonio. The title of her presentation was "Bilateral Dermal Melanocytosis." Her UTMB coauthors were senior medical student Leslie Scroggins and Drs. Karan Sra and Bernard Gibson.

Junior UTMB Medical Student Receives Grant

Congratulations to third year medical student, Alison Wiesenthal for receiving an National AOA Medical Student Service Project Award for her proposal, "Stay Shady! Sun Protection Children's Educational Project." Part of this grant will provide kids with new sunglasses and UV bead bracelets.

Seinfeldology

The UTMB Honors Research Program has approved Jennifer Vickers' original dermatology thesis research proposal entitled, "Pimple Popper, MD: Why Seinfeld is Consequential to Dermatology." Ms. Vickers is currently a senior medical student at UTMB. Her faculty advisor for this research is Richard Wagner, MD. Her ad hoc thesis committee is composed of Drs. Simon Lewis, Sharon Raimer and Brent Kelly. Congratulations on the approval of your interesting research topic!

New Dermatology Fellow in Austin

Clifton Hall, MD has been selected for the 2008-2009 UTMB Austin Dermatology Fellowship in Infectious Dermatology and Underserved Populations. Dr. Hall graduated from the University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, Utah where he also completed his internship. The Fellowship Program Director is Jason Reichenberg, MD. UTMG DIG extends a big Texas welcome our new fellow!

BCM Department of Dermatology Interest Meeting

Dermatology Interest Meeting sponsored by Baylor College of Medicine Dept of Dermatology
Hosted by Drs. John Wolf (program director and chief), Ted Rosen, Ida Orengo, and the Baylor Dermatology staff and residents
Date: August 11, 2008
Time: 6:30 pm
Location: Baylor Clinic, 14th floor Dermatology Suite
Address: 6620 Fannin St, Suite 1425, Houston, TX 77030
Purpose: We will be discussing the application process for dermatology, including strategies and academic performance. Students may come with any questions for staff or residents. The discussion generally lasts about 2 hours, with time for one-on-one questions afterwards. Dinner will be served.

Contact Person: Dornechia George--PGY3 resident.
Contact information: email--degeorge@bcm.edu; cell phone--(713) 301-4680.

Welcome New UTMB Dermatology Residents and Dermatopathology Fellows

The UTMB DIG welcomes our new dermatology residents and dermatopathology fellows for the 2008-2009 academic year:

First Year Dermatology Residents (Class of 2011)

Mika Yamazaki , MD
Matt Petitt, DO
David Raimer, MD


Dermatopathology Fellows (Class of 2009)

Alma C. Berlingeri-Ramos, MD
Cecilia M. Rosales, MD

We look forward to working with everyone!

UTMB Dermatology Conference Room Gets New Look

Medical students and other visitors to the UTMB Dermatology Conference Room will notice that all 10 ongoing departmental commemorative award plaques have now been grouped together on one wall. Five of the awards go annually to medical students (usually seniors):

The Awards are listed chronologically:

Thomas W. Freese, MD Memorial Endowment for Excellence in Dermatology (1986-present): Best overall senior UTMB dermatology student

Edgar B. Smith Endowed Scholarship in Dermatology (2001-present): Best dermatology research by a senior UTMB dermatology student

UTMB Honors Program in Dermatology Research (2001-present): Completion of formal dermatology research project at UTMB with graduation honors awarded

Beiersdorf History of Dermatology Award (2008-present): Best original essay about dermatology by a student taking DERU-4008 each academic year (History of Dermatology)

Best Original Essay for "Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema" (2008-present): Best original essay by a student taking DERU-4051 (UTMB senior selective) or
DERU-4007 (elective) each academic year

Sun Safety Tips Article in Galveston County Daily News

Our very own Drs. Erica Kelly and Richard Wagner offer some important sun safety tips in an article from yesterday's Galveston County Daily News - you can check out the article here:

http://galvestondailynews.com/story.lasso?ewcd=892eb47b0a49a34d

Mark Ramirez, MD Receives Special Honor

Last week Dr. Mark Ramirez, a senior dermatology resident, was recognized by The University of Texas Medical Branch Department of Dermatology for his 8 years of uninterrupted service at the annual UTMB free skin cancer screening clinics in Galveston. Dr. Ramirez attended his first skin cancer screening clinic while he was a first year medical student at UTMB. He participated in the UTMB skin cancer screening effort during all four years of medical school, and also found time to attend it during his busy year of internal medicine internship at UTMB. This year he made a special effort to return to Galveston from San Angelo, Texas, where he will be going into private practice next month. Perfect, Dr. Ramirez!

2008 Annual Dermatology Department Resident and Faculty Awards Announced

The UTMB DIG congratulates the following awardees:

Awards to Senior Dermatology Residents

Medical Student Teaching Award for Excellent Dermatology Teaching by a Senior Resident: Anthony Perri, III, MD

Dermatology Faculty Award for Excellent Dermatology Research by a Senior Dermatology Resident: Mark Ramirez, MD

Awards to Dermatology Faculty

Medical Student Teaching Award for Excellent Dermatology Teaching by Dermatology Faculty: Bernard Gibson, MD

Dermatology Resident Award for Excellent Dermatology Faculty Teaching: Brent Kelly, MD

Dermatology Resident Award for Excellent Dermatology Faculty Teaching by a Community Dermatologist: Maria Colome, MD

2008 UTMB Graduating Dermatology Residents and Dermatopathology Fellows

The UTMB DIG congratulates the following graduates:

Dermatology

Andy Perri, MD (private practice, Conroe, Texas and Clinical Assistant Professor and Director, Hair Transplantation Clinic, The University of Texas Medical Branch)

Mark Ramirez, MD (private practice, San Angelo, Texas)

Karan Sra, MD (private practice, Houston, Texas)


Dermatopathology

Ashley Allison, MD (private practice, Birmingham, Alabama)

Catherine McNeese, MD (private practice, Austin, Texas)


Pediatric Dermatology

Vicki Carr, MD (private practice, Tomball, Texas)

UTMB Dermatology Department Webpage has New Look

The UTMB Department of Dermatology has updated their webpage. It still has the same web address as the previous page:

http://www.utmb.edu/dermatology

Although it is currently under construction, it intends to serve medical students, dermatology residency applicants and patients seeking information about the Department. Our UTMB Dermatology Interest Group (DIG) has been linked to the new website under the section "Galveston Information."

2008 Annual Dermatology Department Medical Student Awards

The UTMB DIG congratulates the following 2008 awardees:


2008 Awards to Medical Students

Best Original Essay for "Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema" course: Conner Chan ("Depiction of Skin Diseases in Film Genres")

Beiersdorf History of Dermatology Award: Heather Harris ("St. Anthony's Fire: A Historical Focus on Gangrenous Ergotism")

Edgar B. Smith Endowed Scholarship Award for Excellent Dermatology Research by a Medical Student: Julie Cummings

Thomas B. Freese Award for Overall Excellence in Dermatology: Ashley Group


UTMB Honors Research Program in Dermatology:

Julie Cummings: Magna Cum Laude ("The Positive Predictive Value of Biopsy Margins in Non-melanoma Skin Carcinomas")

Conner Chan: Magna Cum Laude ("Positive Margins in Surgical Excision of Nonmelanoma Skin Cancers")


Good luck in your careers!

2008 Beiersdorf History of Dermatology Award Announced

Heather Harris was named the first recipient of the Beiersdorf History of Dermatology Award last week prior to graduation from The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) last weekend. Her winning essay was entitled, "St. Anthony's Fire: A Historical Focus on Gangrenous Ergotism." This $500 award and plaque is sponsored by an educational grant from Beiersdorf Inc to the UTMB Department of Dermatology to stimulate medical student interest in the history of dermatology and to recognize excellent original historical research on this topic. To be eligible for this award, UTMB and visiting medical students must enroll in UTMB's 4-week elective DERU-4008 (History of Dermatology) and submit an original historical essay on a topic of their choice. Dr. Harris will take her internship at UT-Southwestern in Dallas, Texas, to be followed by an Emergency Medicine Residency at the same institution. Congratulations Dr. Harris!

First "Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema" Essay Award Announced

Conner Chan received the first annual "Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema" Essay Award for his original manuscript, "Depiction of Skin Diseases in Film Genres" prior to graduation from The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) on Saturday, May 31, 2008. Dr. Chan's essay was selected from 45 essays submitted to
elective DERU-4007 and selective DERU-4051 during the 2007-2008 academic year at UTMB. Following internal medicine internship at UTMB, Dr. Chan will go to Louisiana State University in New Orleans for dermatology residency. He has continued to conduct research in this area of dermatology, and currently has an article in press at Clinics in Dermatology co-authored with Dr. Richard Wagner entitled, "Dermatology at the Movies."

UTMB Dermatology Interest Group Presents Annual Teaching Awards

Each year senior medical students in the UTMB Dermatology Interest Group (DIG) honors a senior dermatology resident and faculty member for their excellent medical student teaching. Ashley Group (center), UTMB DIG Co-President for 2007-2008, made the annual DIG dermatology teaching awards for excellent medical student teaching in dermatology to Drs. Andy Perri (left, resident award) and Dr. Bernard Gibson (right, faculty award) today at the weekly dermatology journal club meeting. Ms. Group was the recipient of the UTMB Department of Dermatology Thomas B. Freese Award for Overall Excellence in Dermatology, an annual academic recognition given to the most outstanding senior medical student for achievement in dermatology. Ms. Group will receive her medical degree from UTMB at tomorrow's graduation ceremony, and following internship in internal medicine at UTMB, she will begin dermatology residency at UTMB in 2009.

Successful Sun Safety Activity!!

On Friday, May 16, UTMB DIG members visited the first grade class at Odyssey Academy Charter School. We taught them how to protect themselves from the sun this summer with protective clothes and sunscreen. Each student made a paper plate sun visor which they will wear at their annual Beach Day next week. It was a lot of fun and we plan to go back next year! Thanks to Ashley Group (MSIV), Mara Dacso (MSIII), and Tatiana Sousa (MSIII) for helping me to make the day a success.

Leslie Scroggins, MSIII

Competitive Funding Opportunity for Medical Student Research Proposals about Melanoma and Skin Cancer (Deadline 10/6/08)

The American Skin Association (ASA) has announced a $7000 grant program intended for 5 medical student recipients in 2009, with the possibility of a second year of funding. Additional information about this research opportunity is available on the ASA website, www.americanskin.org.