From the editor
From the Editor
Dr. Schwarzenberger is the former physician editor of DermWorld.
By Kathryn Schwarzenberger, MD, November 1, 2018
November is a perfect month to give thanks. It’s also a good time for personal reflection. As physicians, we have many privileges and, hopefully, much to be thankful for. With this privilege comes the responsibility of ensuring that we provide the best and most equitable care we can give. In October’s DW, we began a very important conversation about the impact implicit bias may have on your hiring practices. This month, we broaden the discussion by looking at how our implicit biases may impact our patient care. Most of us entered this profession with very altruistic goals and, if asked, likely believe we provide completely unbiased care. Most of us would never intentionally allow patient qualities such as sex, age, or race to influence our care. But what if your patient is homeless? Has no health insurance? Has emotional issues? Have you ever caught yourself making assumptions about a patient based largely on these qualities, rather than taking the time or effort to truly understand the individual? I know I have. Implicit bias is, as our article explains, both unconscious and automatic. Failure to recognize and acknowledge our implicit biases will almost certainly impact our care and, on a system-wide basis, may result in significant health care disparities within our health care system. Please take a few minutes to read our article and learn about a quick test that will help identify your own biases. You may be surprised by what you find. It may not fix all your biases immediately, but it’s a great place to start.
What else is in this issue? You may be familiar with the concept of biosimilars. They were a hot topic several years ago but have not been on the front pages lately. Read about the present status of biosimilars, and see why they remain something we should be aware of. We may yet see them on the market.
Cancers affecting the nail unit are rare, but you don’t want to miss one. Contributing writer Jan Bowers shares with us the wisdom of four of our nail experts to help us better recognize the clinical and dermoscopic features of nail cancers. Our experts offer advice on optimal biopsy techniques and identify some of the potential pitfalls in interpreting the histopathology of nail malignancies. This is a wonderful review, full of many great tips virtually guaranteed to improve the care of any dermatologist caring for nails! I am, unfortunately, one of those dermatologists who is not completely comfortable doing nail biopsies. Perhaps it is time for me to participate in one of the AAD hands-on courses that have been so well received!
We debut a new column this month, which we hope you will enjoy: Asked and Answered. The AAD frequently receives questions from members about a wide range of topics. We have created a forum in which we hope to answer these in a straightforward and informative format. We welcome your questions and encourage you to submit them directly to us at dweditor@aad.org. Feel free to ask all your burning questions! And remember, there is no such thing as a stupid question!
All the best to you and yours this Thanksgiving season!
