Loyola and Hines VA announce accreditation of Dermatopathology Fellowship Program by ACGME

Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine and the Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital Pathology and Dermatology Divisions have announced the accreditation of a Dermatopathology Fellowship Program by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME).

The first fellow will begin training on July 1, 2013. Fellows will receive an extensive, specialized education encompassing all aspects of skin diseases. Program directors Madhu Dahiya, MD, and Kelli Hutchens, MD, in close collaboration with the clinical dermatology and general pathology faculty, will oversee the one-year fellowship, which is open to both pathology- and dermatology-trained physicians.

"This is a tremendous achievement for Loyola and Hines' pathology and dermatology divisions," Dr. Hutchens said. "This accreditation will make our programs much more competitive allowing us to attract some of the best talent in the country."

Fellows will hone their diagnostic skills serving Loyola's busy outpatient network of patients as well as patients in the hospital receiving care for infectious diseases, transplants, burns or a variety of other issues that affect VA patients. Fellows also will explore the causes of skin diseases and new treatments for these conditions through collaboration with the skin research program based in Loyola's Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center.

"The Loyola and Hines VA program is exceptional in that it provides fellows with a synergistic learning experience between clinical diagnosis and investigative dermatology," said Dr. Hutchens, who also is an assistant professor of pathology at Loyola.

Source: Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine