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Dermatology Residency
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Dermatology Residency Clinical Rotations

Dermatology Residency Rotation Schedule

First Year

The schedule for first year dermatology residents will be structured as follows:

  • Nine months of outpatient clinics at UH Cleveland Medical Center / UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center, which includes surgical clinics.
  • Two months of inpatient hospital consults - one month at UH Cleveland Medical Center / UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital and one month at the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.
  • One month of dermatopathology at UH Cleveland Medical Center with one-on-one time spent reading with our dermatopathologists.

Second Year

The schedule for second year dermatology residents will be structured as follows:

  • Five months of outpatient clinics at UH Cleveland Medical Center / UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center, including teledermatology.
  • Two months of inpatient consults - one month at UH Cleveland Medical Center / UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital and one month at the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.
  • One month of dermatopathology at UH Cleveland Medical Center.
  • Two months of research. Research projects are subject to approval from the Research Committee.
  • Two months of dermatologic surgery at UH Cleveland Medical Center and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.

Third Year

The schedule for third year dermatology residents will be structured as follows:

  • Six months of outpatient clinics at UH Cleveland Medical Center / UH Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center, including teledermatology.
  • Two months of inpatient consults/outpatient clinics at UH Regional Hospitals.
  • Two months of dermatopathology at UH Cleveland Medical Center.
  • Two months of dermatologic surgery at UH Cleveland Medical Center and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center.

Demographic diversity: Outpatient clinics are located at UH Cleveland Medical Center and its satellite locations around the Cleveland area offering residents the opportunity to see a diverse patient population in both urban and suburban settings. Rotations at satellite hospitals also allow residents to provide care to patients in a geographically underserved area. Rotations at the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center also provide exposure to a unique patient cohort with an emphasis on resident autonomy.

Dermatopathology: Dermatopathology rotations begin in the first year of residency. Residents rotate with our board certified dermatopathologists for one month during the first year, one month during the second year, and 2 months during the third year. Two to four dermatopathology interactive lectures are led by our dermatopathologists per month using a combination of virtual and glass slides to ensure learning on multiple platforms. Quarterly dermatopathology assessments are given by and reviewed with an attending to help residents progress in their diagnostic skills. Our dermatopathologists specialize in complex dermatopathology including participation in bi-monthly grand rounds and also in a Multi-disciplinary Cutaneous Oncology tumor board where they review complicated melanoma, lymphoma, and other rare cutaneous malignant neoplasm cases. Residents attend the weekly tumor board during their surgical rotation, but have additional dermatopathology exposure during that time.

Subspecialty exposure: Outpatient clinic rotations will expose residents to a variety of medically complex dermatologic conditions including cutaneous lymphoma, contact dermatitis, bullous disorders, psoriasis, pediatric dermatology, vascular anomalies, and supportive oncodermatology. Multidisciplinary clinics including a psoriasis clinic with rheumatology and vascular anomalies clinic with plastic surgery and pediatric cardiology offer additional training and experience in the diagnosis and treatment of these conditions.

Continuity clinic: Residents participate in a continuity clinic once per week. This clinic is supervised by the same attending dermatologist for all 3 years of residency, providing residents with the opportunity to follow patients longitudinally.

Inpatient consult dermatology: During inpatient consult months at UH Cleveland Medical Center, residents will see patients in the emergency department and inpatient units, including UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital, UH MacDonald Women’s Hospital and UH Seidman Cancer Center. The dermatology consult service is run by a dedicated dermatology hospitalist ensuring continuity of care and specialty expertise in the management of our medically complex patients.

Dermatologic surgery: Surgical clinics begin in the first year of residency with four months of weekly excision/surgery clinics at the VA Medical Center. These procedures are performed with supervision by our attending physicians at the VA. Residents also gain exposure to Mohs micrographic surgery, cryosurgery, and lasers and cosmetic procedures. Residents rotate with our Mohs micrographic surgeons for 2 months during the second year and 2 months during the third year. Our surgeons specialize in complex reconstructions providing residents opportunities to learn complex repairs including flaps and grafts. Two to four surgical lectures are scheduled per month including interactive sessions led by surgeons. Residents also attend weekly lymphoma/melanoma tumor board meetings during their surgical rotations.

Aesthetic dermatology: Every 2 – 3 months, for all three years of the program, residents will participate in a resident cosmetic clinic at UH Cleveland Medical Center. In addition, weekly procedure clinics are incorporated into rotations at the VA Medical Center during the third year of residency, where residents gain hands-on exposure under the direct supervision of an attending physician who completed a dedicated laser fellowship. The VA Medical Center is equipped with pulsed-dye, diode, fractional carbon dioxide and erbium-yag lasers.

Call backs/prior authorizations: We are fortunate to have excellent support staff in all of our clinics. Outside of the VA, residents are not expected to perform the majority of their biopsy call backs and prior authorizations.

Program improvement: The rotation schedule is subject to change on an annual basis or as needed based on programmatic needs.