Didactic Education | Emory School of Medicine

Our dermatology residency curriculum centers on a robust teaching model where experienced clinicians directly guide your foundational growth. Structured learning intentionally integrates Bolognia's Dermatology text, ensuring a comprehensive and deeply rooted understanding of the field. Education is highly dynamic, replacing standard lectures with interactive teaching sessions, case-based discussions, and hands-on clinical workshops. Underpinning this rigorous medical training is a continuous focus on patient safety, seamlessly integrated with morbidity and mortality and clinicopathologic conferences to foster critical clinical reflection.

Core Textbook-Based Curriculum

The core curriculum dermatology lectures are organized into units, following along with Bolognia’s Dermatology textbook. Lectures are given by faculty, residents, and visiting lecturers. At the end of every unit, there is a comprehensive review session, emphasizing high-yield information for clinical practice and board exam preparation.

Dermatopathology Scope Sessions

Every Thursday morning, there is a scope session led by a dermatopathologist. In addition to practicing on the multi-headed scope, there are sessions that utilize virtual slides, recognizing the increasing use of virtual slides in practice, as well as on board exams. Approximately once a month, there is a comprehensive review session of the material that had been covered in the preceding weeks, emphasizing high-yield information for clinical practice and board exam preparation. Several times a year focused board review sessions are also conducted.

Emory Dermatology Grand Rounds

Emory Dermatology Grand Rounds occur every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month. Grand rounds usually starts with patient presentations that feature interesting or unique cases encountered in our clinics or on the consult service. Following this, there is a lecture given by individuals invited to speak from our department, the Emory/Atlanta community, or other institutions. A rich variety of topics are selected.

Recent grand rounds presentations have included lectures on hair restoration surgery, health economics, ethical considerations in skin cancer screening, implicit bias, and case presentations from the first-hand experience of practicing dermatology in the war zones of Afghanistan. During their time in residency, each resident will also deliver 1 grand rounds presentation on a topic of their choice under the mentorship of a faculty member.

Journal Club

Regardless of whether one pursues a future in academia or private practice, the ability to critically appraise scientific literature is essential to stay up to date on the continual advancements in dermatology. Once a month, once faculty member and two residents lead our department in evaluating 3 articles published in the recent literature.

Quality Improvement and Patient Safety

The quality improvement & patient safety curriculum is incorporated into our didactics in the form of lectures focused on QI methods, morbidity & mortality conferences, and root-cause analysis workshops. Dr. Lauren Orenstein has a particular interest in quality improvement and directs the resident QI curriculum. Interested residents are encouraged to enroll in the Quality Improvement & Safety Residency Track.

Multi-Disciplinary Tumor Board Meetings and Journal Club

The Melanoma Clinic at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University is a collaborative effort with faculty members from the departments of dermatology, hematology & oncology, pathology, radiation oncology, and surgical oncology. There are weekly tumor board meetings to discuss complex patient cases and monthly journal club sessions that our residents are welcome to attend.