UTMB Dermatology Residents and Faculty Rate Program Highly

The results of the 2014 resident and faculty survey for the UTMB Department of Dermatology have been released by the ACGME. 91% of UTMB’s 10 dermatology residents rated the program “very positive” (the highest rating available), while one resident rated the program as “positive.” 100% of the 8 dermatology faculty surveyed reported that the program rated “very positive.” Congratulations on achieving such outstanding ratings!

Baylor Medical School Now on Probation

In a front page leading story that probably surprised many leaders in medical education, reporter Todd Ackerman of the Houston Chronicle reported that highly ranked Baylor Medical School has been placed on probation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (Ackerman T. Baylor medical school put on probation: Accrediting body cites 14 different 'areas of concern" none in instruction. Houston Chronicle, Saturday, June 28, 2014, pages A1 and A15). Citations related to medical student education included "...timely reporting of grades and observation of students in clinical rotations; and a need for new processes providing midcourse feedback to students..." Tenure issues for faculty and criticism that "...a mechanism for faculty to contribute in decision making" were also cited. Only four other medical schools are currently on probation by the Liason Committee on Medical Education. Adverse publicity due to this drastic administrative action against Baylor Medical School could potentially reduce Baylor's competitiveness nationally for top medical school applicants, residency applicants, and new faculty. It could also impact the competitiveness of Baylor Medical School graduates for residency positions in the upcoming 2015 NRMP. According to this news report, the earliest that Baylor can be taken off probation is in 2016.

PGY4 Dr. Megan Moody Neill Awarded 2013-2014 Resident Research Award

UTMB dermatology residents are required to design and complete a dermatology scholarly project during their three years of training. Their work is typically presented to the entire dermatology department during the PGY4 (final) year of residency. Dr. Megan Moody Neill was selected by UTMB dermatology faculty for recognition of her excellent dermatology research during the 2013-2014 academic year. Her research was about the mechanisms of dermatopathology laboratory errors and the steps needed to prevent them. Congratulations Dr. Neill for your excellent academic work in the UTMB department of dermatology. Dr. Neill’s dermatology faculty supervisor on this quality improvement study was Dr. Brent Kelly.

UTMB PGY4 Dermatology Resident Presents Scholarly Project About PowerPoints in Dermatology Curriculum

Dr. Samantha Robare-Stout, a current PGY4 dermatology resident at UTMB, presented her scholarly project that focused on introducing resident created PowerPoints into the traditional dermatology textbook conferences held during the 2013-2014 academic year. Evaluation about the impact of changes in the textbook review format was associated with better scores on the recent ITE dermatology exam for the PGY3 and PGY3 dermatology residents. A survey of the dermatology residents indicated that they thought these changes had a positive impact on learning dermatology.

Resident Scholarly Project Presentation: Teaching Medical Students About Dermoscopy

Dermoscopy is rarely taught to U.S. medical students. PGY4 UTMB dermatology resident Dr. Jason Jones decided to see if he could teach UTMB medical students more about the topic. He developed an instructional lecture and gave it to interested medical students. Following the lecture, they were better able to distinguish between melanocytic tumors that required referral to a dermatologist or a diagnostic biopsy.

UTMB Dermatology Residents Recognize Faculty for Excellent Dermatology Teaching

Current UTMB dermatology residents have selected UTMB Dermatology Faculty Dr. Brent Kelly and community dermatologist Dr. M. Colome in recognition for their excellent dermatology teaching during the 2013-2014 academic year. Congratulations on your selection for this honor!

Dr. Megan Moody Neill Presents Dermatology Scholarly Project

On Friday, June 20, 2014 (the final day of her dermatology residency program at UTMB), PGY4 dermatology resident Dr. Megan Moody Neill presented her required departmental scholarly project about dermatopathology laboratory errors. She took a comprehensive quality improvement approach to characterize the types of laboratory errors identified and to make recommendiations for continuous quality improvement. Her literature review on published in this research area was comprehensive. Her faculty mentor on this project was Dr. Brent Kelly, UTMB Associate Professor of Dermatology and Director of Dermatopathology at UTMB. Dr. Moody Neill plans on private dermatology practice in Seattle, Washington.

Period 1 Availability for Period 1 UTMB Dermatology Electives and Selectives

Period 1 of the new 2014-2015 Academic Year begins on June 30, 2014 at UTMB. There is still availability for most of UTMB's clinical and didactic dermatology electives and Selectives for UTMB and visiting medical students during Period 1 (see http://www.utmb.edu/meded/electives.asp for additional information). All of the dermatology didactic electives and Selectives are also available through teleconferencing, a distance learning option that has been popular with medical students for the past several  years. Please contact the UTMB Registrar right away if you are interested in any of these courses. UTMB electives and Selectives are 4 weeks in duration and given 13 times each year (13 Periods).

UTMB Dermatology Reorganizing Clinical Dermatology Elective and Acting Internship Selective

Starting Period 1 of the 2014-2015 academic year (June 30th) UTMB’s popular Clinical Dermatology elective (DERU-4010) and Acting Internship Selective (DERU-4006) will have different curricula developed by Dr. Audra Clos, the new dermatology chief resident for medical student education. She has selected a popular dermatology textbook for these clinical rotations (Habif, 5th edition) and will supplement assigned readings and scheduled faculty lectures with American Academy of Dermatology web-based educational materials. Students will be given a clinical quiz at the beginning and end of the rotation, to evaluate what has been learned. Students will also be assigned journal articles to present at the Friday journal clubs.

Multiple First Authors in Dermatology Publications: An Oxymoron?

First authorship peer-reviewed publication in medicine and other scholarly fields is prized by authors and highly respected by other academics because of its prestige and community acknowledgement about responsibility for the reported work. First authors may eventually be rewarded for their effort by preferential selection for prestigious and competitive positions (such as medical school admissions and dermatology residencies), and on the faculty level, with promotion and tenure. Traditionally, there was usually one first author. First authorship in multiauthored should ideally identify the person most responsible for the publication. Typically the person who initiated the work, wrote the first draft and coordinated all revisions, submitted the work, responded to reviewers, corrected the proofs, etc is listed as the first author. The UTMB DIG recently became aware that a highly innovative and respected dermatology journal published an article this month with two “first authors” (seehttp://escholarship.org/uc/item/5037g18h ). Will this become a growing trend in the dermatology literature? Would it ever be possible that all the authors of a multiauthored work could be first authors? Will selection committees treat each of the multiple first authors as the first author? Or will they concluded that a multiple first author publication really does not have any first authors? Hopefully academic journals will address this concern and issue future guidelines, if they have not already done so.

UTMB Dermatology Resident Publishes Case Report About Infected Tattoo

Congratulations to Dr. Rebecca Philips, a current PGY2 UTMB dermatology resident who has just published an interesting case report about an infected tattoo in the June 2014 issue of Dermatology Online Journal (Philips R, Hunter-Ellul LA, Martin JE, Wilkerson MG. Mycobacterium fortuitum infection arising in a new tattoo. Dermatology Online Journal 2014;20:6 https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6bs3q0h0 ). Her UTMB coauthors on this study were Dr. Lindsey Hunter, a PGY3 UTMB dermatology resident, Dr. Julie Martin, a UTMB residency graduate now practicing in Austin, Texas and Dr. Michael Wilkerson, UTMB Professor of Dermatology.

What is the Best Way to Teach Internal Medicine Residents about Dermatology?

According to a recent study from Southwestern Medical School, internal medicine residents learn more dermatology when they are given didactic lectures and multiple choice questions while on dermatology rotations (Cayce R, Bergstresser P, Hesterman K, Condie D. Dermatology curriculum for internal medicine residents: a randomized trial. J Grad Med Educ 2014;6:296-300). This study could influence dermatology curriculum for internal medicine residents in the future, since according to the authors, “…dermatology education is a substantial weakness for many internal medicine residencies.”

Dr. Alex Holliday Accepts Dermatology Fellowship Position

Dr. Alex Holliday, a current PGY2 resident in the UTMB internal medicine program and UTMB SOM graduate, has accepted a dermatology fellowship position at the new Virginia Tech dermatology residency program in Roanoke, Virginia for the 2014-2015 academic year. Congratulations Dr. Holliday!

How did Texas Medical Students Fare in the 2014 NRMP?

The Texas Medical Association has published an analysis of the 2014 NRMP for Texas Medical Students (see http://www.texmed.org/template.aspx?id=5183#Failing for additional details). In brief, Texas could do better. 100 Texas MS4s initially failed to match, but of these 68 later found positions. Ultimately 2% of Texas’ MS4s did not match for a PGY1 position. A poll of Texas Deans’ of Student Affairs found that orthopedics, surgery, otolaryngology, dermatology, obstetrics and gynecology, and ophthalmology were the most competitive specialties for Texas medical students this year.

Dermatology Residency Review Committee Expands Resident Logs to Include Medical Management

Beginning July 1, 2014, dermatology residents in ACGME accredited programs will be required to log medical procedures and management that include patch testing and phototherapy, immunobullous and connective tissue diseases, and “high risk systemic medication management.” High risk medications exclude prednisone and isotretinoin, but include “…cyclosporine, methotrexate, acitretin, dapsone, mycophenolate mofetil, TNF antagonists, IL-12/23 antagonists, IL-17 antagonists, rituximab, thalidomide, lenalidomide, cyclophosphamide, daclizumab, ipilimumab, vemurafenib, vismodegib, and other new and emerging molecular-based therapies.” More detailed information about these new requirements may be found here:
http://www.acgme.org/acgmeweb/Portals/0/PFAssets/ProgramResources/080_Case_and_Medical_Logs_2014.pdf

Tenure Controversy Emerges At MD Anderson

The June 7, 2014 Houston Chronicle featured a front page article coauthored by reporters Todd Ackerman and Eric Berger about a faculty dispute at Houston’s premier cancer center, MD Anderson (“Cancer center in tenure dispute,” pages A1 and A13). Academic censure is possible for MD Anderson if the institution is investigated by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). It has long been known in academic circles that MD Anderson does not offer its faculty traditional tenure. Instead, it offers 7 year appointments that are usually renewed following faculty review. According to Ackerman and Berger, the current controversy arose when three faculty were given unanimous recommendations for renewal by MD Anderson’s institutional committee, but the MD Anderson President rejected the recommendations. UTMB remains on the AAUP censure list following the reduction of tenured faculty in the wake of Hurricane Ike and the resulting financial problems for the institution.

UTMB Dermatology Interest Group 2014 Awards for Excellent Dermatology Teaching

The UTMB Dermatology Interest Group (DIG) President Shelia Jalalat made its annual awards for excellent dermatology teaching to Dr. B. Gibson (UTMB faculty pictured) and
Dr. Samantha Robare-Stout (PGY4 dermatology resident) on Friday, May 30, 2014 during the weekly dermatology journal club. Congratulations on this outstanding recognition by UTMB medical students for your excellent teaching efforts throughout the year!

Dermatology Resident Elected to UTMB House Staff Leadership Committee

Congratulations to Dr. Lindsey Hunter-Ellul, a current PGY3 UTMB dermatology resident, for her recent election to the UTMB Graduate Medical Chief Resident/House Officer Association Officers Subcommittee for the upcoming 2014-2015 academic year. Dr. Hunter-Ellul was elected by the entire UTMB house staff to one of the four “members-at-large” positions.

2014 UTMB Dermatopathology Review Course a Success

2014 UTMB Dermatopathology Review Course a Success

Attendees at the Annual Dermatopathology Review Course held at UTMB on Saturday, May 31, 2014 were very pleased with course content and teachers. Dr. Brent Kelly (UTMB Associate Professor of Dermatology and Chief of UTMB Dermatopathology) co-directed the course this year, and gave lectures along with co-course director Dr. Maribel Colome (former UTMB Chief of Dermatopathology), Cris Berlingeri (UTMB Dermatology Clinical Assistant Professor), Matthew Petitt (former UTMB dermatopathology fellow), Palak Parekh (former UTMB dermatopathology fellow), and Ramone Sanchez (UTMB Dermatopathology Fellowship Director). Representative participant comments were:

“Very helpful while preparing for the boards”

“The handouts are great”

“All the speakers did an excellent job”

“The course was great and all the speakers were wonderful! Thanks for organizing it!”

Seaweed Summer

Heavy seaweed on beaches continues to be a problem for beachgoers this spring. The Houston Chronicle continues to keep area residents informed about the abnormally abundant seaweed washing up on Galveston beaches this year: http://www.chron.com/neighborhood/bayarea/news/article/Seaweed-back-in-Galveston-for-holiday-weekend-5498959.php

UTMB PGY3 Dermatology Resident Honored with Thayer Award

Congratulations to UTMB PGY3 dermatology resident, Dr. Lindsey Hunter-Ellul for being honored by the UTMB John P. McGovern Academy of Oslerian Medicine with the Thayer Award for Excellence in Teaching. Osler Student Scholars nominate residents who serve as excellent professional role models for them. It is well recognized that residents play a key role in the medical education of medical students. MS3 Jacqueline Posada nominated Dr. Hunter-Ellul for this honor. The UTMB DIG congratulates you for this excellent professional recognition!

What Dermatology Applicants Need to Know About Medicare Residency Funding

Most institutions sponsoring dermatology residencies receive funding from Medicare Part B for associated residency education costs. Medicare provides educational funding for residents based on the expected completion time for their first residency program. For primary care specialties such as pediatrics, internal medicine and family medicine, Medicare will fund three years of residency at 1.0 FTE levels. Medicare will also fund dermatology residency at 1.0 FTE for three years. However, if a resident starts or completes another residency prior to beginning dermatology residency, Medicare will reduce funding for the subsequent residency training to 0.5 FTE levels for part or all of the dermatology residency. That often leaves the dermatology residency program financially responsible for the remaining 0.5 FTE Medicare funding loss(es). That is why some institutions prohibit the selection of residents who have exceeded complete 1.0 FTE Medicare funding of their residency. In view of this reality, the best strategy for MS4s interested in a dermatology career is to exclusively apply for transitional or preliminary PGY1 years, since these PGY1 categories do not count against the full three year duration 1.0 FTE funding that Medicare provides for dermatology residencies. MS4s should also be aware that if they take a PGY1 transitional or preliminary year with internal medicine and then continue into a PGY2 year of that specialty, they have already used two years of their 1.0 FTE Medicare funding for internal medicine, and they may become less desirable to dermatology programs due to these funding issues (if they started dermatology residency after taking a PGY2 internal medicine year in , they will only receive one additional year of 1.0 FTE Medicare funding in dermatology residency, and during the last two years will receive 0.5 FTE Medicare funding).

For additional information please see Lori Mihalich-Levin’s well-researched document, “Medicare Payments for Graduate Medical Education:
What Every Medical Student, Resident, and Advisor Needs to Know,” http://www2.uic.edu/stud_orgs/prof/umsc/documents/medicaregme2013.pdf

Editorial Concern about Future Direction of Dermatology

An editorial published in the May 2014 issue of Dermatology Times (“The future of dermatology: a discipline of disease or aesthetics?”  Volume 35 , page 10) by editorial board member Dr. Norman Levine (private dermatology practice in Tucson, Arizona), comments on the growing trend of some dermatologists to place more emphasis on aesthetic patients than those with skin diseases. He wrote, “The most accomplished medical students are accepted into dermatology residency programs that provide them with outstanding educational opportunities. Once the three-year process is complete, the new dermatologists are free to forget much of what they learned about the complex processes of the skin and proceed to make their fortunes by injecting Botox (onabotulinumtoxinA, Allergan) and fillers.” In some cases (especially in areas remote from dermatology residency programs), Dr. Levine reports that patients with “complicated cutaneous autoimmune diseases” cannot find dermatologists in their communities who are willing to treat them, and they must rely on other physicians such as rheumatologists for their skin disease management.

UTMB Graduate Medical Education Alters Residency Funding

In a wide reaching change, UTMB Graduate Medical Education (GME) has indicated that there will be changes in funding for new residents throughout the institution beginning in the 2015-2016 academic year. It is very important for UTMB MS4 medical students to understand these new rules, especially if they fail to initially match into a dermatology residency and plan reapplying. Starting in the 2015-2016 academic year, specific UTMB departments (rather than GME) will be required to fund residents who have exhausted their initial residency funding. Initial residency funding is determined by the type of specialty initially matched into by an applicant. For example, a person matching into a categorical internal medicine, family medicine, or pediatric residency will be given 3 years of funding because training is typically completed in three years for primary care residencies. If an applicant has already completed a residency in pediatrics, family medicine or internal medicine and then matches into a PGY2 dermatology position at UTMB, the UTMB dermatology department will be responsible for funding the second residency. Current yearly training and benefits for residents cost approximately $88,000 at UTMB. These financial considerations make the selection of “prior-residency” physicians much less likely in the future. A medical student who wishes to avoid using up a year of funding should take a transitional or preliminary PGY1 year. Another alternative for a medical student considering a dermatology residency would be to match into a general surgery residency for their PGY1 year, because since surgery is a 5 year residency program, there would still be 4 years of potential funding left if they were able to match into a dermatology residency later. UTMB’s GRE change is similar to existing policies at most other residency training programs across the United States.

Dr. Brandon Goodwin Accepts UTMB Dermatopathology Fellowship for 2015-2016 Academic Year

Congratulations to Dr. Brandon Goodwin, a current PGY3 UTMB dermatology resident for accepting a dermatopathology fellowship at UTMB for the 2015-2016 academic year. He will serve as the Chief Academic Dermatology Resident during his PGY4 year. UTMB DIG medical students look forward to working with you in the clinic and on the dermatopathology service.

Additional Insights About Dermatology Application Strategies During the 2014 NRMP

As previously posted, the NRMP recently released data about the 2014 Dermatology Residency Match. The most surprising is data found on Table 13 (Applicant Choices by Specialty, page 34) and Figure 6 (page 36). There were 414 dermatology positions offered through the 2014 NRMP when all types of positions are counted [PGY1 categorical dermatology starting in 2014 with dermatology usually integrated into PGY1 year, PGY2 advanced dermatology positions for 2015 following PGY1 year (the largest category of dermatology residency positions offered), and PGY2 positions that begin in July 2014 that typically require the PGY1 year to have been completed by July 1, 2014]. According to the published 2014 NRMP data, dermatology was the only choice for 88 US MS4 applicants, and the preferred choice (only choice and first choice combined) for 375 allopathic seniors. As might be expected, for independent applicants (all other applicants besides US MS4s), dermatology was the only choice for 105 applicants. For additional information, please see http://www.nrmp.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Main-Match-Results-and-Data-2014.pdf

UTMB MS4 Will Tausend Publishes Research Paper about Psoriasis Treatments

Congratulations to UTMB DIG Vice President MS4 Will Tausend for his excellent and detailed paper about new psoriasis treatments that was recently published in the Journal of Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery (Tausend W, Downing C, Trying S. Systematic Review of Interleukin-12, Interleukin-17, and Interleukin-23 Pathway Inhibitors for the Treatment of Moderate-to-Severe Chronic Plaque Psoriasis: Ustekinumab, Briakinumab, Tildrakizumab, Guselkumab, Secukinumab, Ixekizumab, and Brodalumab. J Cutan Med Surg. 2014 May-Jun;18(3):156-69 ). The PMID number for this article is  PMID:  24800703. Will will be taking his PGY1 year in the Department of Internal Medicine at UTMB before beginning dermatology residency at UTMB In July 2015.

Congratulations to the new 2014-2015 DIG Officers!

We elected the new UTMB DIG officers for the 2014-2015 academic year during our meeting last week. There were an overwhelming amount of students interested in getting involved this year. Congratulations, everyone!

President:

Alex Acosta, MS3

Vice President:

Mac Dung, MS2

Fundraising/AIM for a Cure Melanoma Walk Co-Chairs:

Zachary Jones, MS3

Jasmine Stephens, MS2

Community Outreach Chair Positions:

Sun Protection/Skin Cancer Awareness Co-Chairs:

Hunter Neely, MS2

Skylar White, MS3

Kristyna Gleghorn, MS2

Kyle Kaltwasser, MS3

Greg Peterson, MS3

Contact Dermatitis Awareness Co-Chairs:

Alfreda Batts, MS2

Drew Decrescenzo, MS1

Psoriasis Awareness Co-Chairs:

Rachel Pellerin, MS3

Nadia Megahed, MS2

DIG@UTMB Blog Co-Editors: 

Alex Acosta (president) and Mac Dung (vice president)

New Officers- An email with further information about expectations and details about your position will be sent out soon. Congratulations and welcome to the UTMB DIG team!

Also, a special thank you to Dr. Jason Jones, UTMB Dermatology fourth year resident, for giving us an informative lecture on dermoscopy and how to diagnose pigmented lesion. It was great!

Dermatology in the 2014 NRMP Match

The National Residency Match Program (NRMP) has released data bout the 2014 match (see http://www.nrmp.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Main-Match-Results-and-Data-2014.pdf ).
380 PGY2 (first year of dermatology residency to begin in 2015) positions were offered in 2014 (page 8). 374 were filled through the NRMP. US MS4s matched into 334 of these positions, 23 were filled by other US medical school graduates, and additional positions were matched by osteopathic medical students (3), US international medical school graduates (4), and non-US international medical school graduates (10). 9.1% of US MS4s who only ranked dermatology programs failed to match into dermatology positions, but 61% of independent applicants who only ranked dermatology failed to match (page 36, figure 6). In 2014 dermatology residency programs needed to rank 3.6 applicants for each available PGY2 position in order to fill all positions. This is the same number number of applicants needed to fill all positions as last year (page 42).

UTMB Partners with Angleton Danbury Medical Center

Reporter Brittany Lamas (The Facts: Covering the Birthplace of Texas for 100 years, “Angleton Danbury Medical Center becoming part of UTMB system:
Hospital boards agree to partnership,” http://thefacts.com/news/article_11e05f47-09cc-53d9-8899-f67e11152870.html ) is reporting this new business relationship for UTMB.

UTMB Announces Dates for Outside Dermatology Residency Applicants in 2015

UTMB plans on interviewing its outside applicants on Thursday, January 22 and Friday, January 23 in 2015. Last year there were over 400 applicants to the UTMB dermatology residency program, and UTMB invited 30 outside applicants to interview. Invited applicants will select one of the two days to interview on a first come basis (15 interviews each day). Lunch will be scheduled with the current UTMB dermatology residents during the interview day. This year rotating medical students will not be automatically interviewed for residency positions. However, rotators with strong applications will be invited for interviews with other outside applicants. All internal UTMB dermatology applicants (medical students and house staff) will be scheduled for separate interviews in December 2014.

Dr. Bernard Gibson Elected to Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA)

The UTMB DIG sends out congratulations to Dr. Bernard Gibson, who was recently elected as a UTMB faculty member to UTMB’s Alpha Chapter of Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA). He attended medical school at UCSF and completed dermatology residency at Baylor. Following a career in private practice, he joined the UTMB clinical dermatology faculty in 2005. Currently he is the Director of QA/QI. He currently sees dermatology patients at the UTMB clinics in Galveston and Bay Colony (League City, Texas).

Congratulations Dr. Jarad Levin

UTMB DIG congratulates Dr. Jarad Levin who was recently selected for dermatology residency at the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Levin served as UTMB DIG President and graduated from UTMB SOM in 2010 with magna cum laude dermatology research honors. He completed internal medicine residency at UTMB in 2013 and was elected into AOA as a resident member. Since that time has been on the UTMB internal medicine faculty.

Walk to Cure Psoriasis: A Success!

This past Saturday on May 10^th UTMB Dermatology Interest Group participated in the Annual Walk to Cure Psoriasis in Houston, Tx.  For the event Dr. Tyring of Clear Lake created a competition between the Dermatology Interest Groups from UTMB, UT Houston and Baylor. UTMB DIG came in 2^nd in the competition raising $125.00. Thank you to everyone who signed up and donated to our team. A special thank you to our DIG members, friends, and family for representing UTMB DIG at the event! 

                      Pictured: Alexandra Acosta, MS3 (left) and Racheal Pellerin, MS3 (right)

REMINDER: DIG Meeting/Elections Tomorrow 5:30pm

The UTMB DIG will be holding the last meeting of the school year and elections on Wednesday May 14th in the Dermatology Conference Room (4.112 McCullough) at 5:30 PM.

If you plan to run for a position, please prepare a brief, informal speech discussing your involvement in the DIG as well as any ideas you may have for the upcoming academic year.

NOTE: If you are interested in running for a position but unable to attend the meeting, please contact szjalala@utmb.edu and you can still be on the voting ballot.

- President (1)

- Vice President (1)

- Fundraising/AIM for a Cure Melanoma Walk Chairs (2)

- Community Outreach (4): includes...

- Head Community Outreach/Advertising Chair (1)

- Sun Protection/Skin Cancer Awareness Chair (1)

-Contact Dermatitis Awareness Chair (1)

- Psoriasis Awareness Chair (1)

Dr. Jason Jones, UTMB Dermatology fourth year resident, will also present a brief lecture on dermoscopy and how to diagnose pigmented lesions.

UTMB Annual Free Skin Cancer Screening in Galveston a Success

On Saturday, May 10, 2014 UTMB dermatology residents and faculty provided free skin cancer screenings at the UTMB Stewart Road Dermatology Clinic. Thank you for volunteering your time for this valuable community service!

Does Demonstrated Successful Teamwork Play a Role in Dermatology Resident Selection?

Residency programs in dermatology often consider applicant “fit” into the existing program. One component of “fit” is workplace engagement. Is the applicant able to demonstrate prior teamwork experiences that enhanced their previous organization? Business managers say that employee engagement is a critical ingredient for success [Baldwin L. Employee engagement: a key success factor in the workplace. Practical Dermatology 2014;11(4):18.] Author Laura Baldwin lists 6 characteristics of engaged employees in her recent article: “strong belief in the organization,” “desire to contribute and make things better,” “demonstrate respectfulness and helpfulness to peers,” “willing to go ‘the extra mile’, ” “problem-solving attitude,” and “actively supports organizational leadership.” This sounds like a good dermatology residency program too!

American Society for Dermatologic Surgery Offers Dermatology Resident Scholarships

Dermatology residents interested in attending the 2014 annual American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS) meeting (November 6-9, San Diego, California) are encouraged to apply to the ASDS for a travel scholarship. The ASDS will award $750 to the first 266 dermatology applicants. The scholarship application is available at :  https://www.asds.net/annualmeeting/ This is the second biggest US dermatology meeting and emphasis is on all things related to dermatologic surgery and procedures.

UTMB Dermatology Presents Three Posters at Spring 2014 Texas Dermatological Society Meeting

UTMB dermatology residents, medical students and faculty presented three posters at the 2014 Spring meeting of the Texas Dermatological Society in Fort Worth. The poster presentations were:

Generalized Hypopigmentation Associated with Imatinib Therapy. Lindsey Hunter-Ellul, M.D., Jacqueline Posada (MSIII UTMB), Sri Obulareddy, M.D. (UTMB Internal Medicine PGY3), and Brent Kelly, M.D.

A Case of Pediatric Keratosis Lichenoides Chronica. Rebecca Philips, M.D., Adrian Subrt (MSIV UTMB), Megan Moody Neill, M.D.

"Things aren't always as they seem" -- A Challenging Case of Subcutaneous Panniculitis like T-Cell Lymphoma (SPTCL). Brandon Goodwin, M.D., Jacqueline Posada (MSIII UTMB), Brent Kelly, M.D.

Congratulations to all of our UTMB posters for representing UTMB Dermatology so well at this successful meeting!

Dermatology at the 2014 National Student Research Forum

On April 24th and 25th of 2014, UTMB hosted the 55th annual National Student Research Forum. Over 200 students from graduate and medical schools across the United States and Canada came to Galveston to present their research. Juan Sosa was awarded the best dermatology poster award this year.   A total of three Dermatology related research posters were presented at this year’s conference. The posters were:

-Joseph Babcock (Florida State University), “A Splinted Excisional Full-Thickness Wound Model for Evaluation of Therapeutic Efficacy in the Treatment of Non-healing Diabetic Wounds.” Coauthors included Dr. Michael Blaber, Dr. Kathleen Harper, and Ms. Sachiko Blaber.

-Juan Sosa (University of Texas Southwestern-Dallas), “Confetti Depigmentation as a Sign of Rapidly Progressing Vitiligo.” Coauthors included Mr. Sharif Currimbhoy, Ms. Samantha Sirignano, Mr. Ryan O’Leary, and Dr. Amit Pandya.

-Kevin Sharghi (UTMB), “Effective Skin Cancer Education, Outreach, and Screening in Central Texas.” Coauthors included Dr. Ammar Ahmed, Dr. Jason Reichenberg, and Nurse Dawn Parsons (all associated with the University of Texas Southwestern-Austin).

The event will be hosted again next April. For more information about the forum, please to go http://www.utmb.edu/nsrf/