title: Medical school dermatology curriculum: are we adequately preparing primary care physicians?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There is a lack of information regarding the dermatology learning needs of primary care physicians and residents.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine dermatologic topics that primary care physicians consider important and to determine primary care residents' ratings of the teaching adequacy of these topics in the undergraduate medical curriculum.
  
  
  METHODS
  Primary care physicians and residents were surveyed regarding the importance and teaching adequacy of 17 dermatologic content areas.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ninety-two primary care physicians identified 13 dermatologic content areas important for their practices. Two hundred fifty-two primary care residents identified 8 adequately taught topics and 9 inadequately taught topics.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Internal medicine and family medicine physicians and residents from only 10 regions were surveyed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Seventeen content areas can be divided into 3 categories: dermatologic topics that are important and adequately taught, topics that are unimportant, and a group of important, yet inadequately taught content areas. This latter group should be further integrated into dermatology curricula at U.S. medical schools.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, University of California-San Francisco, 1701 Divisadero St. 340, San Francisco, CA 94143-0316, USA.
authors.forename: Nina K
authors.initials: NK
authors.lastname: Hansra
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: O'Sullivan
authors.forename: Cynthia L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Timothy G
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Berger
mesh_terms: D002140:California; D017679:Cryotherapy; D003479:Curriculum / Q000592:standards*; D003880:Dermatology / Q000193:education*; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000592:standards; D005194:Family Practice / Q000193:education*; D007388:Internal Medicine / Q000193:education*; D007396:Internship and Residency; D010821:Physicians, Family / Q000193:education*; D013663:Teaching / Q000592:standards