Women's Dermatologic Society

WDS Young Physician Spotlight Interview - Jordan Lim, MD Interviewed by Brianna Olamiju, MD and Amaris Geisler, MD   1.) How did you become involved in the WDS and what benefits do you think WDS membership provides for residents/young physicians? I first heard about WDS in residency and I actually served as a resident liaison for my program. Since then, I have attended many of their events – one most recent that I found incredibly impactful was their Women in Dermatology Collaborative Event at the AAD where a panel of several dermatology leaders addressed issues that women dermatologists face on a daily basis providing supportive tools and resources to combat these issues. Another memorable event was one of their virtual panels regarding family planning in an academic career where they hosted fertility experts, and had members share their personal experiences. This event literally brought me to tears. That is the impact of the WDS. All of their events are inspiring, ...

  From Dr. Shawna Flanagan I used to give my staff a Christmas/Holiday Bonus at the end of the year. Sometimes staff would expect this even if they had only worked in the office for several months. I changed my policy to every 6-month review and bonus structure. Every six months the other staff anonymously evaluates the person who is having their six-month review. The person can get a one-week bonus check if they are doing well in the eyes of their coworkers. My office manager and I also have a sit-down meeting with the person to address any issues they may want to speak about or discuss things they are doing well and address issues that need work. This is better for the practice financially as well as the bonuses are staggered. Each staff member who is performing well gets a two-week extra bonus check per year. I have $5 bills and when someone on the staff goes beyond in the office, they can recommend another staff member for a high five---a $5 “tip” if you will. The staff...

  Applying for Cosmetic Dermatologic Surgery Fellowship Special thanks to Dr. Murad Alam for providing tips and guidance on the best way to prepare and apply for a cosmetics fellowship! Dr. Alam currently serves as the Vice-Chair of Dermatology and Chief of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. He has also been elected American Academy of Dermatology president for 2026. 1. How can an applicant best demonstrate their interest in a cosmetic fellowship? To demonstrate interest in a cosmetic fellowship, an applicant should reach out to the director of cosmetic dermatology at their residency program as early as they can in training.  This allows the director to take special interest in the potential applicant and work with them to develop their skills. There may be increased exposure to cosmetic procedures, opportunity to participate in related clinical research, and other enrichment opportunities like attendance at regional...

  WDS Young Physician Spotlight Interview - Jennifer Adams, MD Interviewed by Brianna Olamiju, MD and Amaris Geisler, MD 1.)        How did you become involved in the WDS and what benefits do you think WDS membership provides for residents/young physicians? I learned about the free resident membership for WDS and signed up to stay in the loop during my first-year of dermatology training at University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital. I was later chosen for the WDS mentorship award during my senior year which supported a rotation with the National Hansen’s Disease Program- reinforcing my career foundation for infectious disease dermatology.   Although WDS mentorship, networking with colleagues, scholarships and service opportunities have long been available to support residents/young physicians, I have also loved to direct our current residents to their fantastic recent resident lecture series (the repository of prior recorded lectures are ...

Special thanks to Kachiu Lee, MD, Monica Boen, MD, Lindsey Goddard, MD and Arisa Ortiz, MD What should I do if I’m interested in a cosmetic dermatology fellowship? Attend meetings that will allow you to network with various program directors - ASDS, ASLMS. Try to submit abstracts to present at these meetings. Consider which ASDS cosmetic fellowships you would want to apply for during your second year of dermatology residency. Then, reach out to these programs to try to spend a week rotating at these programs. Funding is available through the ASDS, ASLMS, and WDS for these rotations. Look into different ASDS cosmetic programs and what procedures they focus on (available on the ASDS website average numbers of each procedure/category) so that you can apply/rotate at a program that best fits with your career goals (some heavy on lasers vs fillers vs lifting procedures). If you’re unable to rotate, reach out to your program of interest to see if they have any reviews, book cha...