Dermatology residency during a pandemic, plus the past, future, and current state of ID Dermatology

Dermatology Weekly

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Dermatology News, we are looking back at how the field has changed since that first issue in January 1970. The focus in episode 73 is infectious disease. There’s a lot to be grateful for but there are also challenges like antibiotic resistance that weren’t on the radar of dermatologists decades ago. In this episode, Nick Andrews welcomes Theodore Rosen, MD, to discuss the past, future, and current state of ID Dermatology. You can read more about the past 50 years of ID by clicking this link: https://bit.ly/3hri3v2 You can learn more about Dr. Rosen by clicking this link: https://bit.ly/2CtdmSU

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What will your dermatology residency look like in the midst of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)? In this episode, guest host Dr. Candrice Heath talks to Drs. Brittany Oliver (@dr.dermatic), Sophie Greenberg (@sophiegreenbergmd), and Julie Croley (@DrSkinandSmiles) about their experiences navigating through dermatology residency during the COVID-19 pandemic. They share their perspectives from different areas of the country on how the current health crisis has impacted their training and responsibilities. They also provide tips for incoming dermatology residents on how to adapt their expectations to the post-COVID environment.

“It was so rewarding and I was really anxious to get in and help, hearing about all the stories about exhausted physicians and patients who needed care, so I really felt called to be in the center of it and I’m really happy I could give back in that way,” Dr. Greenberg said of working with COVID-19 patients in New York City.

Key takeaways from this episode:

• Drs. Oliver, Greenberg, and Croley describe how their roles and duties as dermatology residents have changed as their institutions have prepared for surges of COVID-19 patients.
• They discuss the impact of the lockdown and shifting priorities within their hospitals on their learning structure and educational opportunities, including lectures and dermatopathology training. “Our didactics were converted to Zoom once the lockdown began. . . . Some attendings volunteered to give us extra lectures because our clinics were not operating in the normal way. It helped compensate to make sure we’re getting enough education and training,” Dr. Greenberg says.
• Teledermatology services have been crucial to continuing patient care during the pandemic. Drs. Oliver, Greenberg, and Croley talk about the challenges and benefits of using telemedicine both now and in the future. “I am glad to be getting the exposure now so that I can use the experience on a few different platforms, and then wherever I land for my first job, I can hopefully adapt quickly to whatever it is they’re using,” Dr. Oliver says.
• They offer advice for new dermatology residents who are coming into a residency experience that looks different now than what they expected because of COVID-19. “Everything’s changing on a day-to-day basis: the COVID situation’s changing, the rules and policies are changing in our hospital, what was protocol yesterday might not be protocol today. . . . I think just having patience, being adaptable, and just realizing that hey, everybody is going through the exact same thing . . . is really the best advice I would have for people,” Dr. Croley emphasizes.
• They reflect on medical knowledge and skills they otherwise would not have learned without their experience as dermatology residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Residency typically is a time to get to bond with co-residents and lean on family and friends for support through stressful times. Drs. Oliver, Greenberg, and Croley discuss ways they have been staying connected with people during the lockdown and while social distancing.

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Hosts: Nick Andrews; Candrice R. Heath, MD (Temple University Hospital, Philadelphia, Penn.)

Guests: Brittany Oliver, MD (Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia); Sophie A. Greenberg, MD (Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY); Julie Ann Amthor Croley, MD (The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston)

Disclosures: Drs. Heath, Oliver, Greenberg, and Croley report no conflicts of interest.

Show notes: Alicia Sonners, Melissa Sears

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