Clinical education

FIRST YEAR (PGY2)
In year one, residents rotate at 10-week intervals through the OHSU, VAMC, dermatologic surgery and contact dermatitis clinics. At OHSU, residents work closely with faculty members in caring for a variety of both common and uncommon dermatologic diseases. While at the VAMC, residents are exposed to a different patient population and are given more autonomy. During the dermatologic surgery rotation residents are exposed to a variety of treatment modalities such as Mohs micrographic surgery and reconstruction, laser treatment and many other cosmetic procedures.

SECOND YEAR (PGY3)
In the year two, residents rotate at 10-week intervals through the OHSU and VAMC clinics, pediatric dermatology, dermatopathology, and Kaiser Permanente. The Dermatopathology rotation provides an outstanding education in the histopathology of cutaneous diseases. The rotation at Kaiser exposes the resident to general dermatology in a busy "private practice" setting, in which he or she functions as the primary provider of dermatologic care. During the pediatric dermatology rotation, the resident sees patients in the outpatient and inpatient setting with out board-certified pediatric dermatologists to learn and become confident in the diagnosis and management of skin disease in the neonate, child and adolescent.

THIRD YEAR (PGY4)
In the year three, residents rotate at 10-12 week intervals through OHSU and VAMC clinics, hospital inpatient service, research, and elective blocks. Third-year residents build on their previous years’ experiences in clinic and patient management during the VAMC and OHSU rotations to develop accuracy and confidence in the delivery of quality skin care. 3rd year residents also spend time in specialty hair and nail clinics during their OHSU rotation. The research block presents an opportunity for residents to explore their particular area of interest, which can be clinical, basic science, or epidemiological in nature. Residents can use this rotation to develop and declare a particular expertise by working with a specialist in that area. The hospital inpatient service allows the resident to act as the primary caretaker of patients with challenging dermatologic diseases. The ability to monitor these patients and their responses to treatment in this setting is invaluable. Additionally, the "hospital" resident takes inpatient consultations at both OHSU and the VAMC, while interacting closely with other hospital services. 

Didactic education

• Core Curriculum
  • A fully developed core curriculum for didactic resident education is covered over the three-year program. Lectures are given by the OHSU Dermatology faculty, community volunteer faculty, affiliate faculty, and invited experts in various specific fields.  Residents give at least two in depth lectures per year on topics of their choice.
     
• Dermatopathology Unknown Sessions
  • Dermatopathology unknown sessions are held weekly and slides are provided to the residents in advance for review.
     
• Clinical Unknown Sessions
  • Clinical unknown sessions (Kodachromes) are held monthly and are led by faculty members.
     
• Journal Clubs
  • Journal Clubs are held once per month and review both clinical and basic science journals, as well as articles focused on ethical issues.
     
• Translational Research Conference
  • The translational research conference is held once a month. This is a joint conference where residents and basic scientists in our department pair up to present topics of dermatologic relevance with the residents focusing on the clinical features, and the scientists covering the basic science aspect of the topic.
     
• Morphology Conference
  • Morphology Conference (Grand Rounds) is held weekly. Interesting or challenging patients are presented by faculty, residents, and community dermatologists for assistance or educational value. Residents are asked to describe morphology of dermatologic findings and answer questions on disease processes.
     
• Oregon Dermatology Society Meetings
  • Residents attend Oregon Dermatology Society (ODS) meetings monthly from October to April, as well as attend an annual meeting in the summer. Interesting cases are presented by community dermatologists, as well as faculty, and are discussed by conference attendees. Each resident gives an in depth presentation once yearly at the Oregon Dermatology Society meetings. ODS meetings also provide invaluable networking opportunities to connect with dermatologists throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington.
     
• Montagna Symposium on the Biology of Skin
  • The Montagna Symposium for the Biology of the Skin is an annual basic science conference dedicated to a single major topic in cutaneous biology. It attracts prominent  speakers each year and is  usually held at an Oregon coastal resort. Resident attendance is required and  supported by the Department of Dermatology. Read about the Montagna Symposium on the Biology of Skin.
     
• National and Regional Conferences
  • Residents have the opportunity to attend regional and/or national professional meetings, such as the American Academy of Dermatology Annual Meeting, and meetings at which they present their work.

Rotations

• OHSU Medical Dermatology
  • The outpatient medical dermatology practice at OHSU is organized into half-day sessions (five in the morning and five in the afternoon).  As part of the OHSU resident rotation schedule, residents work eight or nine of the 10 scheduled half-day sessions with a faculty member.  Although the style of each faculty member may be different, patients are usually seen first by a resident who presents and discusses that patient with the faculty member.  A diagnosis and treatment plan are derived, and the resident actively participates in the discussion of that treatment plan and initial follow-up with the patient regarding any questions, biopsy and laboratory results, and patient care issues which arise during the clinical rotation.  On average, a resident will see 90 to 100 outpatients a week during the OHSU medical dermatology rotation.  This varies some, depending upon the stage of resident training and the attending to whom the resident is assigned.
     
• Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC)
  • Clinics are held five half-days per week at the VAMC, with approximately 50 patients per clinic. Patients are first evaluated by residents. The attending physician staffs all first year residents regardless of difficulty and discusses patient care with the resident. Second and third year residents may require less supervision and may simply discuss patient management or request that the attending also examine and discuss the patients. On Tuesday mornings and Friday afternoons, there are dedicated resident surgery clinics, supervised by the Mohs fellow or attending. Each resident typically performs 1-3 cases, and more complex surgeries are performed by senior residents.
     
• Dermatologic Surgery
  • Resident education in dermatologic surgery occurs in several ways and stages during the residency.  In addition to a set of core didactic sessions that are given over a three-year period, residents rotate in the dermatologic surgery unit for a 10-week block during their first year of training.  During the rotation, residents assist and/or care for greater than 95% of the surgical patients that are treated by one of the attending physicians - Dr. Bar, Dr. Leitenberger, and Dr. Yu, or the surgical fellow.  They receive increasing levels of responsibility and independence based upon their level of training, their surgical aptitude and skill, and their desire to learn and/or perform surgery.
  • Residents participate in Mohs micrographic surgery and reconstruction, laser surgery, cosmetic surgery; including laser or chemical peel, Botox, collagen and other injectibles, tissue augmentation; the full range of cosmetic procedures.  The resident receives not only a broad experience in surgical procedures, but also an understanding of the clinical nature of cutaneous oncology, tissue movement, reconstruction, and aesthetics.
     
• Contact Dermatitis
  • Each first year resident rotates for 10 weeks in the contact dermatitis clinic. During the rotation, residents will become familiar with contact dermatitis through direct patient care, didactic sessions, and assigned reading material. They will learn to distinguish contact dermatitis from other skin conditions, become familiar with the most common contact allergens, and be able to apply and interpret patch tests.
     
• Dermatopathology
  • Dermatopathology training is an integral part of the dermatology residency at OHSU.  Each resident spends 10 weeks as a second year resident on the dermatopathology rotation.  Each afternoon the resident participates in sign-out of all dermatopathology cases from the OHSU outpatient and inpatient dermatology services, as well as cases sent in from outside physicians for consultation.  Residents examine each case and offer diagnostic possibilities.  A dermatopathology faculty member guides the resident through any necessary modification of the diagnosis and discusses any ancillary tests that may be helpful.  Each resident compiles a collection of interesting cases during the dermatopathology rotation, which is then available to all residents as a learning aid.  Residents on other clinical rotations often come to sign-out after completion of their clinical duties.  In addition, residents from the pathology department rotate on the dermatopathology service, allowing constructive interaction between dermatology and pathology residents. Dermatopathology is also integrated into the residency program through weekly histology sessions and other didactic conferences.
     
• Pediatric Dermatology
  • Residents rotate through our busy pediatric dermatology service for 10 weeks during their second year in the program, which includes outpatient clinics and covering pediatric inpatient consults. OHSU is home to the only pediatric dermatologists in Portland; therefore, there is never a shortage of referrals. Upon completion of the rotation, residents will be able to define, classify and recognize the pediatric dermatoses encountered in general dermatology practice. They will understand the embryology and normal development of the skin and its appendages, and its relationship to the pathophysiology of skin diseases in newborns and children. Residents will learn to discuss the historical features; physical findings, laboratory investigations and management issues of the pediatric dermatoses encountered in general dermatology practice. Additionally, they will outline a treatment plan for each of the pediatric dermatoses encountered in general dermatology practice.
     
• Kaiser Permanente
  • The Kaiser rotation exposes the resident to general dermatology in a busy private practice setting within which he or she functions as the primary provider of dermatologic care. This is a second year rotation and provides residents with the opportunity to improve their skills in all six areas of core competencies. Nine half-day dermatology clinics are scheduled for the resident in the outpatient department each week.  The resident performs a history and physical examination, and then provides a diagnosis and plan of care.  The resident acts as the primary physician, although three faculty members are available for assistance at all times.
     
• Nail and Hair Clinics
  • Third year residents on OHSU rotation spend Tuesday afternoons alternating every other week between the nail clinic at OHSU with Dr. Phoebe Rich and a community hair clinic with Dr. Nisha Desai, who is a hair expert. They also rotate once a month with Dr. Benjamin Vazquez at OHSU for specialized hair clinic. Rotations at these clinics during a 10-week block provide a valuable opportunity to diagnose and treat patients with both common and uncommon hair and nail conditions.
  • In the nail clinic, residents expand their knowledge of the diagnosis and treatment of nail disease. Residents take the history and perform a physical examination of patients with nail disease referred to the clinic for specialized care. Under Dr. Rich’s supervision, residents participate in diagnostic testing including nail palate removal and biopsies of nail bed and matrix. Residents appropriate surgical techniques, as well as techniques for mycological diagnosis including fungal cultures and mounts.
  • In the hair clinic, residents learn a systematic approach to the diagnosis and treatment of hair disease. Residents learn to take a proper history, develop a diagnosis from patients with hair loss, and learn when and how to perform a hair examination and scalp biopsy.
     
• Hospital Inpatient Service
  • The inpatient consult service is a 10-week block in the third year of residency. The resident on this rotation sees consults at OHSU and the VAMC, and is on call for the inpatient service from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday.  The resident sees the patient on the same day the consultation is requested, performs a history and physical examination, and writes a preliminary consultation note. The attending physician will then see the patient with the resident and formulate a plan with the resident, and the resident provides follow-up recommendations. Patients with extensive psoriasis, immunobullous disease, graft versus host disease, drug reactions, and erythroderma are among more common diagnoses on the adult inpatient service.
     
• Continuity Clinic
  • Each resident has a one half-day continuity clinic per week starting in their first year and continuing throughout their three years of residency. The resident acts as the provider with an attending physician present to oversee and advise, as needed. This clinic provides a unique opportunity for the resident to see continuity of skin disease over three years of residency.

Research

The OHSU Department of Dermatology is particularly dedicated to clinical and investigative research. We have a strong basic and translational research division (learn more) and strong clinical trials team (learn more).

Resident Projects: 

We encourage residents to participate in research projects throughout their residency. Our faculty are enthusiastic and excited about teaching and collaborating on projects, including clinical, translational and basic science projects.

PGY-4 residents have a dedicated research rotation during which they work on a research project of their choice, with a mentor of their choice.

Academic Medical Dermatologist Track (separate match)

This match spot is for an individual planning a future career as an academic dermatologist, and includes additional training and mentorship in clinical research to help establish and build a clinical niche in academic medical dermatology. 

The first two years of dermatology residency training (PGY2 and PGY3) are identical to your co-residents. During the final year of residency (PGY4), this individual will enroll in the Human Investigations Program at OHSU. One half-day of protected academic time will be provided to begin 2 hours per week of coursework to start a Masters in Clinical Research (MCR). This course time is dedicated to a hands-on approach to clinical research study design, critique, and analysis and includes a mentored capstone project to assist the learner in designing a study or writing a grant proposal tailored to their area of interest. 

After completion of residency, the newly board-certified dermatologist will spend a final year seeing patients part-time as a medical dermatologist and part-time finishing the Masters in Clinical Research course work to be ready for an academic career. 

Academic Medical Dermatologist Track is a unique program code on ERAS; those interested must apply to program code 1599080A2. 

2+2 Investigative Research in Kulkarni Lab Track (Separate Match)

This is our specialized track for those applicants interested in a career in investigative dermatology, specifically working in the Kulkarni Lab as part of their training. The Kulkarni Lab is focused on translational skin research and broadly interested in 3 areas: 1. Early and non-invasive melanoma detection; 2. Understanding mechanisms of cutaneous side effects caused by systemic therapies, with particular interest in immune checkpoint blockade; 3. Developing novel therapeutics for advanced skin cancers, including melanoma.  There may be opportunities to work in related areas as well.

In the first two years of their residency (PGY-2 and PGY-3), participants will receive the same clinical training as their co-residents. For their PGY-4 year, residents will spend 25% of their time in clinical training and 75% of their time in the Kulkarni lab at OHSU. Residents will graduate and take the American Board of Dermatology examination after their PGY-4 year. The PGY-5 year is split between continued post-doctoral laboratory work under Dr. Kulkarni and patient care as a board-certified dermatologist.

Those interested must apply to the unique program code on ERAS (specific code currently TBD).

Program strengths

• We have a broad representation of internationally respected faculty in subspecialty areas within our department, including medical dermatology, surgical dermatology, pediatric dermatology, contact and occupational dermatology, dermatopathology and immunodermatology.
• Not only are our faculty experts in their fields, but they are passionate about teaching.
• A supportive and collegial environment exists which facilitates the interaction of faculty (both clinical and basic science) with residents.
• Our program has a history of strong residents, and we generally match high in our rank list. They are very supportive of one another and work well together as a team.
• Our community dermatologists actively participate in departmental activities and include many outstanding practitioners and leaders in dermatology.
• Our clinics are busy with a good diversity of diseases and age ranges represented at OHSU, the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) and Kaiser Permanente.
• Our state-of-the-art clinical facilities are located in OHSU's Center for Health & Healing. An aerial tram links the outpatient facility to the OHSU Hospital, the VAMC and Doernbecher Children's Hospital.

Resident benefits

OHSU residents receive the following benefits:

• Four weeks of annual paid vacation
• Various plan options provided by OHSU to choose medical, dental, vision, and life insurances with optional disability, Ad&D and family coverage. Learn more.
• Retirement plan
• Lab coats, business cards, pagers, long-distance authorization codes and scrubs
• Resident Wellness Program

How to apply

We are reviewing applications for the 2023 match for 5 positions.

NRMP Program Codes:
Dermatology Residency: 1599080A0
Academic Medical Dermatologist Track: Not currently offering
2+2 Investigative Research in Kulkarni Lab Track: Code TBD

The dermatology resident training program at OHSU accepts applications through the Electronic Residency Application System (ERAS), and we participate in the National Residency Matching Program (NRMP). Any applications that are late or received after the deadline will not be considered.
If you are selected for an interview, you will have the opportunity to meet faculty and staff, talk with current residents and learn more about Portland (virtually). Our interviews until further notice will be held virtually (AAMC virtual interview tips for applicants).

Requirements:

• Common Application Form
• Personal statement
• Transcripts
• Dean’s letter (MSPE)
• Three to four letters of reference
• USMLE scores (A minimum of Step 1 completed)
• Applicants must be legally able to work in the U.S., or obtain work authorization

Important Dates:

September 2024: ERAS opens and applications can be submitted
September 25, 2024: Application Deadline
November 18, 2024: Interviews offered
November 22, 2024: Interviews scheduled
January 8, 2025: Interviews (virtual)
January 15, 2025: Interviews (virtual)
January 29, 2025: Interviews (virtual)
March 21, 2025: Match Day

Our Resident Selection Committee selects applicants based on holistic review of their application. We consider integrity, ability for team work, motivation and drive, scholarship, research, community service and other unique characteristics. We seek applicants from diverse backgrounds, who will be kind and compassionate doctors who put patients first. We seek to train those with high potential for leadership in dermatology and the community.

Commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion

OHSU has a goal to be a great organization, diverse in people and ideas, and is committed to creating and sustaining a community of inclusion. 

Our Dermatology Residency Program is committed to diversity, inclusion, equity and justice at our program, department, and institution. We perform holistic review of applicants to our program. We explore ways forward to improve the recruitment process to be inclusive and welcoming to those underrepresented in medicine. We honor and embrace the unique contributions and perspectives of all residents, faculty, staff, patients, students, volunteers and communities. We respect and value those of all age, color, culture, disability, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status. 

OHSU as an institution has established a number of anti-racist initiatives.

Center for Diversity and Inclusion

The OHSU Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI) leads and supports the university-wide initiatives to create an environment of respect and inclusion for all people. CDI is dedicated to fostering partnerships to enhance OHSU’s mission of healing, teaching, research, and community services. With a range of resources and services, CDI supports and empowers students, faculty, and staff from all walks of life, including historically underrepresented populations.