Inpatient Dermatology Best Practice Strategies for Educating and Relaying Findings to Colleagues.

Area of Science:

• Dermatology
• Medical Education

Background:

• Non-dermatologists receive limited training in diagnosing and managing skin conditions.
• Traditional didactic teaching methods for inpatient dermatology have shown limited success.
• Hospitalists express a desire for increased education from dermatology specialists.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the role of education in inpatient dermatology consults.
• To identify best practices for communicating findings to non-dermatologist colleagues.
• To highlight effective strategies for improving dermatology education within the hospital setting.

Main Methods:

• Review of current literature on inpatient dermatology consultations and medical education.
• Analysis of communication strategies employed during consultations.
• Identification of opportunities for integrating teaching into routine consult practices.

Main Results:

• Education integrated into standard consultation practices (notes, one-on-one communication, bedside rounds) can improve teaching.
• Hospitalists are receptive to learning from dermatology specialists during consults.
• Current educational efforts via traditional didactics have yielded limited success.

Conclusions:

• Key principles for effective consultations include communication, leveraging existing consultation components for teaching, and ensuring close follow-up.
• Inpatient dermatologists can implement simple measures to foster education and communication with primary teams.
• These strategies are applicable to both in-person and telehealth consultations.