Beiersdorf’s Residents of Distinction program mentor and former mentee Raj Chovatiya, MD, PhD, Founder and Director of the Center for Medical Dermatology and Immunology Research in Chicago, chats with his mentee Dawn Queen, MD, a Resident at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City, about her experience as one of this year’s five Beiersdorf dermatology Residents of Distinction.
Here are some abridged highlights from their conversation:
Dr. Chovatiya: “This is an amazing opportunity for residents who compete from all over the country to talk about their research, learn about presentation skills, network, and mix and mingle at the conference. And Dawn is one of our amazing recipients of this honor. First of all, congratulations. Tell me a little bit about what your experience has been like in the program and what you’re going to be presenting on here at Maui Derm.
Dr. Queen. “It’s been an absolutely incredible experience. I feel so, so lucky to be here. I’m one among five Residents of Distinction and we, we all feel equally blessed. This year I’m going to be presenting on the use of a topical chemotherapy cream, Fluorouracil (5-FU), for the treatment of squamous cell carcinoma in situ and also in the post-Mohs setting for the treatment of positive margins that have residual squamous cell carcinoma in situ. Now, Raj, correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe that you too are a resident of distinction once upon a time.” Dr. Chovatiya: “You are correct. Sometime many years ago before I got a chance to be an awesome mentor for this program, I was indeed one of the recipients, and that was such an integral and early experience in my life that really shaped a lot of what I do in terms of thinking about speaking at conferences, research, and a lot of the mentorship that comes with that. So once upon a time, my presentation was all about immunobolus disease, pemphigus, and pemphigoid, and thinking about the risk of fractures and osteoporosis. Now, obviously, that’s not something I’ve talked about in a little bit of time. I remember it like it was just yesterday. It really was just such a fun experience overall, and I think Beiersdorf’s Resident of Distinction program is just so important to help folks like Dawn and me really think about what could be the next step for their career and parlay that into today. [I’m] so excited that I’ve had a chance to mentor you, Dawn, and just so excited that Beiersdorf has continued to sponsor this program to keep on going forward at Maui Derm 2024.”