Dermatologic Procedures Course Description

Course Credits: Earn up to 15.50 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ and AAFP Prescribed Credits

Course Price: $1,695

Dermatologic Procedures is a two-day course.


Patients expect primary care clinicians to care for skin problems. New techniques allow rapid assessment and treatment with less scarring. Although often neglected in residency training, various skin procedures can and should be performed daily in your practice. Why refer the patients out when you can diagnose and treat most of them? This dermatology CME course includes training for common skin procedures, including skin anesthesia, common nerve blocks, skin biopsy techniques, cryosurgery, electrosurgery, surgical excisions/repairs, dermoscopy, and coding. Over 1,000 actual clinical slides are used in addition to text to review the treatment of lipomas, cysts, warts, skin tags, chalazions, abscesses, actinics, seborrheics, basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer, malignant melanoma, and much more. 

Patients expect primary care clinicians to care for skin problems. New techniques allow rapid assessment and treatment with more comfort and less scarring. Although often neglected in residency training and even after entering practice, various skin procedures can and should be performed daily in your practice. Why refer your patients when you can learn to diagnose and treat many of their skin lesions? This primary care skin procedures CME course provides an introduction to learning common skin procedures, including skin anesthesia, common nerve blocks, skin biopsy techniques, cryosurgery, electrosurgery, surgical excisions/repairs, dermoscopy, and procedural coding. Additional topics review the treatment of lipomas, cysts, warts, skin tags, chalazions, abscesses, actinics, seborrheics, basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer, malignant melanoma, and other skin conditions. Various teaching techniques are utilized to give each participant the experience of didactic lectures, clinical photographs, procedural videos on actual patients, group discussions, and hands-on practice. Extensive citation of the current medical literature keeps the information evidence-based and applicable to all patients.

Day 1 starts with an introduction and orientation to the course that maintains a patient-centered focus. This is followed by understanding the approach to the patient with a skin lesion, including providing safe and effective local and nerve block anesthesia. During this course, participants will learn how to perform skin biopsies, including punch, tangential, and curette/cautery techniques. The cryosurgery section provides a review of the use of topical refrigerants, liquid nitrogen, and hand-held cryo units. This is followed by a review of the most common benign skin conditions. The day concludes with an introduction to electrosurgery of lesions using hyfrecators and cutting/coagulation machines, as most CME course participants say after seeing electrosurgery: “Amazing! Practical.” "Use this every day in the office." "These techniques enable treatment of common problems you never thought you would treat: nevi, tags, warts, pyogenic granulomas, basal cell skin cancers, and more."

After a good night’s sleep, Day 2 of the dermatologic procedures course begins with an extensive introduction to dermoscopy as used in a primary care setting with hands-on practice. Next is a discussion of sun-damaged skin lesions including seborrheic and actinic keratosis. We continue by learning the concepts and performing surgical excisions and repairs. We will conduct an in-depth review of cutaneous malignancies including basal cell, squamous cell, and malignant melanoma. The course concludes with an interactive session on procedural coding and how to develop a personalized implementation plan.