Dermatology

You will get a couple full- or half-days in the clinic seeing patients with a variety of dermatological complaints. These shifts may not fall during your ambulatory block due to scheduling logistics, but the content will be on your ambulatory exam

Currently in Prince George, there is no full-time dermatologist (this may change in the future). There is a visiting Dermatologist, Dr. Sladden, who works out of the Regional clinic seeing patients.

You will be responsible for taking a history from the patient and coming up with a description of their dermatological complaint. You will present this to your preceptor with a short differential, then you will go in and see the patient together and review management. You will dictate consult notes for all patients you have seen at the end of the day- so make sure to take down notes of the management plan for your dictation. If there are any procedures, such as biopsies, you will be able to do those.

No call.

Before your days in the clinic, make sure to review the terminology used to describe a lesion and have an approach to a DDx for dermatological lesions.

There can be a lot of diagnoses you have never heard of before, but as long as you give your ddx a try, the preceptor is very easy going and not worried about you coming to the right answer.

If there are two med students in the clinic, and your dictation skills are proficient, you may be able to quickly dictate each preceding case while your colleague is reviewing theirs with the attending!