Why choose a board-certified dermatologist?

While many physicians and non-physicians care for the skin, none possess the depth and breadth of knowledge of a board-certified dermatologist.

A board-certified dermatologist has completed 4 years of post-graduate medical education after medical school and passed the American Board of Dermatology’s rigorous certifying examination. Dermatologists are trained in the medical, surgical and cosmetic care of the skin, hair, nails and mucous membranes.

By the numbers, a board-certified dermatologist:

• sees over 10,000 patients with skin disease during their training;
• performs between 1,000 and 2,000 surgical procedures on the skin, varying in complexity from skin biopsies to facial reconstruction after skin cancer surgery;
• completes 6 months of skin pathology training, which includes review of over 5,000 pathologic specimens.

Once in practice, most dermatologists will see 5,000 – 10,000 patients per year. Diseases encountered in practice range from the common (acne, warts, eczema and psoriasis) to the very rare (genetic skin disease, autoimmune skin disease and rare tumors of the skin).

In order to be “board-certified” a dermatologist graduating from an accredited program must pass a rigorous certifying examination which tests knowledge in medical dermatology, pediatric dermatology, surgical dermatology and pathology. Board-certified dermatologists must then enroll in a life-long maintenance of certification program that requires regular continuing medical education, peer-review, patient-review, re-examination and completion of modules on patient safety and clinical care.

The result of this training, certification and continuing education is a physician without equal when it comes to diagnosis and management of skin disease. When you chose a board-certified dermatologist you are choosing the best possible care for your skin.