Dermatology Section

PURPOSE
To assist selected dermatology residents, nurses, nursing students, medical residents, and medical students in participating in their first Global Health Outreach short-term medical missions experience, enabling them to become familiar with the cultural, social, spiritual, medical and dental problems in developing countries while allowing them to serve the underserved.

ELIGIBILITY
The applicant must be:

1. A CMDA member (CMDA membership is at no cost for student members). You can join CMDA at www.cmda.org/join.
2. A resident in dermatology or other medical field, a nurse, or a nursing or medical student in a professional or pre-professional course of study expected to lead to a degree in medicine or nursing.
3. New to Global Health Outreach short-term medical missions.

METHOD OF APPLICATION
Applications will be reviewed as they are submitted. The application must be submitted at least two months prior to the trip departure, and the applicant must be accepted as a Global Health Outreach trip participant before applying for the scholarship. There is a maximum of one scholarship per Global Health Outreach trip, pending available funds. An email endorsement of your application by the team leader is required. Email your application to Global Health Outreach.

AWARDS
Awards will be announced by email as they are awarded. The amount of the award will be up to $1,500 and is to be used for project and transportation-related expenses, with rare exceptions for longer, more remote trips where the costs are higher.

APPLICATION
The applicant must submit a letter of no more than 300 words that describes their current course of education, and their motivation for serving in medical missions. This letter should address what they hope to learn from their participation in the short-term medical missions experience.

After the trip is complete, the awardee is required to submit a 400-500 word summary report of their experience that focuses on the spiritual change that took place in their life as a result of the trip. The awardee is to create a profile on MedicalMissions.com and to post a summary of this story on this website after returning from the trip. The awardee is to write a letter of appreciation to the donor and to be available to talk by phone with the donor. This letter of appreciation is to be included with the summary report so that it can be forwarded to the donor.

1. Volunteer For Healthcare For the Poor
   Go to Healthcare For the Poor. A link for clinics serving the poor is available. Most clinics will work with volunteer dermatologists for patients to be seen in their office or arrange for a designated day to schedule dermatology patients at the facility.
2. Volunteer For Teledermatology Consultation. Consult Bridge is a free Christian telemedicine consultative service established by 2 CMDA members in 2023 after CMDA's MD2ndOpinion telemedicine consultative service was discontinued.  Recruitment of both overseas medical missionaries and various US based specialty consultants is underway.  Dermatology consultation was the #1 desired consultation according to Consult Bridge's 2023 survey of 88 overseas medical missionaries.  More information and sign up are available at Consult Bridge , www.consultbridge.org
3. Volunteer for CMDA Dermatology Section Leadership
   Various areas for contribution to the ongoing CMDA Dermatology Section functions are available.  Periodic Zoom meetings are held for the leadership team. Contact via email at [email protected].
4. Volunteer for Global Health Outreach (GHO) Medical Mission Trips
   Volunteer for Global Health Outreach (GHO) Medical Mission Trips GHO has approximately 50 short-term medical mission trips each year to many areas of the world. Some sensitive area trips are not listed on the GHO Trip Calendar. Dr. Trish Burgess is GHO’s new director, and she has an excellent introduction and vision sharing video on the GHO web site. (www.cmda.org/gho). Trish has enabled the GHO website to identify GHO trips where the team leader has specifically requested a dermatologist on the team (go to “Find A Trip”, then “View Opportunities” and then enter keyword “dermatologist”). A specific focus is being made to make a long-term impact on individuals and areas served and to also focus on unreached, more difficult areas of the world. In addition, CMDA dermatologists have often expressed a desire to primarily see dermatology patients on medical mission trips. Trish and the identified GHO team leaders have responded to this request. The team leader will have the triage folks to flag any dermatology patients who will then be placed in a separate waiting area to be seen by the dermatologist. After treating the patient and optimally praying with the patient, the patient will return to the general waiting area where the other medical problems will be addressed by the other physicians on the team. Using this modified protocol dermatologists have seen ~90% dermatology patients on previous medical mission trips. You may email Sam Reck ([email protected]) with any questions. Also, GHO trip updates may be found in the "Missions" section. The multiple trips to Nicaragua, and Dominican Republic are specific derm targeted trips where CryAc units, 5 liter LN2 dewars and surgical instruments have been left for derms to use on trips there.
5. Volunteer for Medical Education International (MEI) Trips
   MEI focuses on academic education of similar specialists in overseas medical schools or teaching hospitals. MEI trips to Mongolia request only board certified derms. MEI trips to Cuba have opportunities for general derms, pediatric derms and Mohs/dermatological surgeons.  Go to http://www.cmda.org/mei.
6. Volunteer to be a Mentor for a CMDA Resident
   A list of CMDA Dermatologists has been started to connect willing CMDA Derm graduates with interested CMDA residents.  In addition CMDA Regional Directors or CMDA National Office will occasionally have a CMDA Resident who requests a CMDA member who is willing to act as a sounding board/"connect"/mentor for various life issues. This can be done locally if the resident is in one's geographical area or remotely via cell phone, text, and email   Excellent articles concerning "connect"/sounding board/mentor issues are available with the March, 2020 issue of CMDA's Encore publication. Contact Dr. Jeff Kwock at [email protected] for more information. A new CMDA mentorship program option is planned to be available in 2024. Alternate considerations include contacting a nearby CMDA student chapter leader or a nearby university CRU, Intervarsity, RUF or similar Christian organization leader and advise him/her about your willingness to be a mentor to a pre-med student.  Some materials that have been helpful for connecting include Faith Prescriptions (free to CMDA members and students), reading Practice By The Book, and Bridging The Gap: Where Medical Science and The Church Meet.
7. Attend CMDA National Convention
   This yearly convention has excellent plenary speakers and also multiple breakout sessions with CME. Go to www.cmda.org/nationalconvention.
8. Attend Global Missions Health Conference
   The GMHC is the world’s largest gathering of healthcare professionals, students, and organizations dedicated to healthcare missions. This annual three-day conference features breakout sessions, plenary speakers, exhibitors, and special events. It’s the premier event to learn, connect, and build relationships that help advance the Kingdom through medical missions. It is held in Louisville, KY on November 7-9, 2024. Click here to register here. In addition, GMHC/MedicalMissions.com has in 2024 begun to offer free virtual missions events and free monthly email articles. To receive these items create a free account by going to MedicalMissions.com. MedicalMissions.com.
9. View Grace Prescriptions DVDs
   The Grace Prescriptions presentations help physicians to be able to ethically share their faith with patients in a clinical setting. This is a “second generation” Saline Solution. Go to http://www.cmda.christianbook.com for workbooks and DVDs.
10. Contribute to CMDA Dermatology Scholarship
    This is a newly established scholarship to assist primarily dermatology residents and secondarily nurses, nursing students, medical residents and medical students in participating in their first Global Health Outreach short term medical missions experience, enabling them to become familiar with the cultural, social, spiritual, and medical problems in developing countries while allowing them to serve the underserved.  Applications are reviewed by the GHO Director, and the amount of the award will be up to $1,000 to be used for project and transportation related expenses. More remote, longer trips are open for higher amounts. For more information and application go to the above drop-down.
11. Practice By The Book
    Practice By The Book, a Christian Doctor's Guide to living and serving which is Biblically sound and medically reliable is an excellent book for us to read since it helps us to balance our faith, our family, our practice and our finances. Go to http://www.cmda.christianbook.com to order.
12. The Faith Prescriptions presentations are the "third generation" (after Saline Solutions and Grace Prescriptions) help for healthcare professionals to be able to ethically, comfortably, and effectively share their faith in a clinical setting.  These presentations can be found at the CMDA Learning Center and are free to CMDA members (nominal fee to non-dues paying participants).
13. Bridging The Gap: Where Medical Science and Church Meet A new church resource/small group study was developed by expert healthcare professionals to ask difficult, thought-provoking questions as we seek the truth found in God's Word about the ethical issues facing Christians today. Session topics include beginning of life, end of life, addictions, gender identity, right of conscience and sexuality. Go to cmda.org/bridgingthegap. Also, please see the Bridging the Gap PowerPoint by Dr. Bert Jones, here.
14. "A CMDA Derm Colleague's Transition to Retirement"? Please click here to read more about this transition.

For more information about any of the above options, contact us at [email protected].

2025 CMDA Dermatology Section Annual Meeting
The 2025 CMDA Dermatology Section Annual Meeting will be held on Sunday, March 9, 2025, 6:45 AM in Orlando, Florida in conjunction with the 2025 Annual Convention of the American Academy of Dermatology. Please click here to register.

2025 CMDA National Convention
The 2025 CMDA National Convention will be held May 1-4, 2025, in St. Charles, Missouri. Go to https://natcon.cmda.org/ for more details.

• CMDA Global Health Outreach Mission Trips
  Global Health Outreach (GHO) provides opportunities for dermatologists to find sites specifically requesting dermatologists: To find those sites, click here. (If that search does not work, under “Refine Search,” use the keyword dermatologist.)
  • GHO trips requesting dermatologists The multiple Nicaragua and Dominican Republic GHO trips will be our long-term dermatology focus trips.  In both Nicaragua and Dominican Republic, a Cry-Ac unit, a 5-liter liquid nitrogen dewar, some surgical instruments and supplies have been stored for use by dermatologists.  In addition, there are multiple other GHO locations requesting dermatologists on the GHO trip calendar.
  • 2024 Nicaragua GHO Trips
    1. Feb. 10 – 18 - Bill Sasser, DDS
    2. March 9 -17 - George Gonzalez, MD
    3. April 6 -14 - Bill Griffin, DDS
    4. June 15- 24 - Trish Burgess, MD
    5. July 13 -24 - Bryan and Marnie Smith
    6. Sept. 14 -22 - Dave Killough

    2024 Dominican Republic GHO Trips

    1. March 16 -24 - Dr. Ileen Herroro-Szostak
    2. June 15 -23 - Dr. Rick Boden
    3. July 6 – 14 - Dr. Trish Burgess
    4. Aug.3 -11 - Katie Stokes, RN

All 2024 GHO Dominican Republic trips are in the Urgent Needs Category for CMDA Derms as team members.  Contact Sam Reck, MD at [email protected] for more information.

Dermatology Basic Formulary

Dermatology GHO Information

• • Click here to listen to Dr. Trish Burgess, Director of Global Health Outreach, discuss her new book, God Sightings, a collection of stories of the best God sightings from GHO mission trips around the world with Dr. Mike Chupp on the CMDA Matters podcast.
  • GHO Missions Webinar: Trish Burgess - Going on Missions

• Medical Missions CME Courses in CMDA Learning Center (Free for CMDA members):

1) NATCOM - Best Practices on a Short Term Medical Mission (1 hour Cat.1 CME)

2) GHO - International Health (6.75 hours Cat 1 CME)

a) Best Ethics and Practices of Short Term Medical Mission Leadership

b) Vector and Non-Vector Borne Illnesses

c) Diagnostic and Management Dilemmas in Working Across Cultures

d) Vaccine Preventable Diseases

e) Diseases Prevalent in Africa

f) Human Trafficking Victims in Your Medical and Dental Practices

g) Dental Diagnosis and Treatment for Physicians

• CMDA Medical Education International (MEI) Trips
  • Medical Education International (MEI) is CMDA's short term missions’ program that provides academic teaching and clinical training requested from governments primarily in low- and middle-income countries, from professional training institutions and hospitals while building relationships with local colleagues and modelling the compassion, care, and love of Jesus.

    2024 MEI trips requesting dermatologists (some opportunities for dermatology residents and medical students)

    • Cuba
      May 16 -26, 2024 - Peds/Med/Autism
      Oct. 31 - Nov. 10, 2024 - Peds/Med/Autism
      Nov. 7 -17, 2024 – Surgical

      Desire update in melanoma treatments (medical and surgical), update regarding Moh's surgery, update regarding biologicals in dermatology (psoriasis in particular). Excellent opportunities for pediatric dermatologists and for Moh's/dermatological surgeons.

    • Mongolia
      April 12-27, 2024 - Mongolia Multispecialty Team

      Only board-certified dermatologists for these teams. Expect to give ~6 lectures and to spend the rest of the day with Mongolian dermatologists at the university hospital or in the government operated dermatology hospital.

• Medical Missions Conferences
  • 2024 Global Missions Health Conference will be held Nov. 7 - 9, 2024

Dermatology Residents and Med Students Interested in Dermatology Medical Missions

Several CMDA Dermatologists have expressed a willingness to have residents and med students accompany them on short term medical missions (both GHO trips and other Christian organization medical mission trips).  Scholarships are available for GHO trips. Contact Sam Reck, MD at [email protected] for more information.