The following is a summary of “An inventory of current interventions to improve dermatologic clinical assessment in skin of color and recommendations for continued advancement,” published in the APRIL 2023 issue of Dermatology by Beiter, et al.

For a study, researchers sought to review the existing literature and evaluate interventions implemented to enhance dermatology trainees’ competence and confidence in assessing skin of color (SOC) pathology.

In January 2022, a systematic review of PubMed, Scopus, and Science Direct was conducted, which yielded 1,097 records. After excluding duplicates and irrelevant studies, three studies were included. Two studies investigated interventions among medical students, and one study was among dermatology residents.

The interventions assessed the impact of specific SOC curricula, which varied in development. For example, one study engaged medical students of color in curriculum development, while the other study retrospectively identified and included images of patients with SOC in a new database used for educational purposes. Engaging with SOC communities may be the most effective intervention strategy, whether using patient data or allowing leadership by medical students of color.

Interventions that engage with SOC communities may be most relevant in improving trainee experiences with SOC pathology. The present study proposed a system for future interventions to engage medical students of color at their institution, aiming to enhance their experiences with SOC and recruit and support a diverse medical student body in the field of dermatology.

Reference: jaad.org/article/S0190-9622(22)02979-6/fulltext