Resident Rounds Part I. Program Spotlight: Ohio State University

August 2014 | Volume 13 | Issue 8 | Features | 980 | Copyright © August 2014


Benjamin H. Kaffenberger MD, Stephanie K. Fabbro MD, and Katya L. Harfmann MD

Division of Dermatology, Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OH

Abstract
Resident Rounds is a section of the JDD dedicated to highlighting various dermatology departments with residency training programs. Resident Rounds includes three sections: (1) a program spotlight highlighting pertinent information about the department and residency training program; (2) a section presenting study materials used by residents at the program; and (3) a section designed to highlight recent interesting cases seen at the institution. This issue of Resident Rounds features the Division of Dermatology at Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. The editor of Resident Rounds is Dr. Ali Alikhan. If you are interested in highlighting your training program in a future issue, please contact Dr. Alikhan at alialikhan1@yahoo.com.
Ohio State University offers an innovative dermatology program in the large college-town setting of Columbus, OH. Applicants match into a categorical position, which allows for learning of the electronic medical record, hospital system, and collaborating physicians prior to matriculating in the three years of dermatology training. Currently, there are 2 or 3 residents per year and a total of 12 full-time faculty, with an additional 5 attendings working part-time at the VA and other resident clinics. For more information, our public website is available at OSUDerm.org.
The intern year is a preliminary medicine position and offers extensive elective time within an academic setting. It takes place within 1 general and 4 specialty hospitals at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. If desired, an intern can rotate through a more community-based care model at OSU University Hospital- East as well. A night float system limits physician burnout, and specialty hospitals and specialty services allow for the intern to pick services with a high frequency of skin diseases; these are often diseases that will not frequently be seen in the outpatient setting, such as infectious diseases, metastatic diseases, and paraneoplastic syndromes. The intern may choose 4 elective rotations; the dermatology categorical residents typically choose among outpatient dermatology, dermatology research, rheumatology, allergy/immunology, podiatry, and plastic surgery. The inpatient and outpatient electronic medical records systems utilize Epic.
After finishing the intern year, residents continue to rotate through the consultation service at the main medical center, but also see outpatients at Ohio State facilities, Nationwide Children’s Hospital (NCH) facilities, the Columbus VA, and the Columbus Physicians’ Free Clinic.
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Medical Clinics

The backbone of the program lies in resident continuity clinics, occurring nearly every day of the week and allowing residents to follow patients through diagnosis and treatment of their conditions. An innovative lottery system allows residents after establishing a foundation of general dermatology knowledge during their first year to pick their own clinics, allowing them to build niche interests. The program offers several subspecialty clinics as listed below:
  • There is a weekly multidisciplinary cutaneous and peripheral T-cell lymphoma clinic run by Drs. Henry Wong and Pierluigi Porcu.
  • Dr. Matt Zirwas, who is also the program director, runs a contact dermatitis clinic at which residents may be involved with patch test interpretation.
  • Dr. Mark Bechtel runs a complex medical dermatology clinic for patients with blistering diseases, connective tissue
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