Challenges Facing Our Specialty

We are privileged to practice a specialty that can provide patients with dramatic improvements in health and quality of life. We give back in so many ways, such as volunteering to help underserved populations overseas or at home. We have raised public awareness of the threat of melanoma. The Canadian Dermatology Association turned Niagara Falls orange on Melanoma Monday this year to raise skin cancer awareness; well done! Every one of us who helps support our patient advocacy efforts or the continued success of Camp Discovery (http://www.aad.org/dermatology-a-to-z/for-kids/camp-discovery) enhances the image of our specialty. Each time you see a hospital consultation, volunteer in the community, or squeeze in a patient who cannot pay at the end of a long day, you do more than help an individual; you help ensure the very future of our specialty.

To face the challenges ahead, we must stick together and project a unified voice. Stay informed! If you do not regularly read Dermatology World and the AAD’s member-to-member alerts, you are missing a lot. Our future depends on each one of us working together for our patients and our specialty.