Dermatology News
Updates from the UNMC Department of Dermatology
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Welcoming Dr. Luke Witte and Dr. Jesse Hirner
This fall, we were thrilled to welcome two exceptional dermatologists to our team!
- Dr. Luke Witte joined us in August after completing his dermatology residency at the University of Missouri. A Nebraska native, Dr. Witte returned home to practice in Omaha. He was drawn to dermatology because of its visual nature and the opportunity to improve patients’ confidence by treating skin issues, especially in children. Fun facts about Dr. Witte: he plays piano and guitar, loves snow skiing, and has a sweet spot for chocolate!
- Dr. Jesse Hirner joined us in September. He also completed his dermatology residency at the University of Missouri before pursuing a fellowship in complex medical dermatology at Brigham and Women's Hospital. Dr. Hirner is passionate about dermatology for its ability to make a positive impact on patients’ lives. Outside of work, he enjoys trail running (he recently completed a trail marathon!), fishing, and reading.
We are excited to have them on board and look forward to the positive impact they will bring to our team and patients!
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2024 Association of Professors of Dermatology Annual Meeting | |
In November, some members of our faculty and leadership team attended the Association of Professors of Dermatology (APD) Annual Conference in Chicago, IL. Our Department Administrator, Karle Olnes, and Clinic Manager, Dani Lamer, proudly presented an overview of the UNMC/Nebraska Medicine Department of Dermatology and shared best practices with the Dermatology Academic Administrators Group (DAAG) colleagues. Our faculty that were in attendance participated in breakout sessions, including the Dermatology Teachers Exchange Group (DTEG), Dermatopathology, Pediatric Dermatology, and Dermatologic Surgery Sections. It was an inspiring experience to connect with passionate professionals in academic medicine, exchange ideas, and spark new opportunities for collaboration.
Karle Olnes (Department Administrator)
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Photo 1: The Nebraska Medicine Dermatology Culture Retreat celebrated teamwork and excellence with an Olympics-inspired theme. The event featured engaging Olympic-style games that encouraged collaboration and friendly competition among team members. In addition to the activities, several guest speakers shared valuable insights, fostering professional growth and inspiration. The retreat was a vibrant mix of fun and learning, strengthening team bonds while promoting a culture of excellence and innovation.
Photo 2: Our faculty and APPs gathered at Camp Brewster for a refreshing day off campus for their fall retreat. They kicked off the morning with important updates, strategic planning, and discussing process improvements. Afterward, they enjoyed a beautiful guided tour through Fontanelle Forest.
Photo 3: Our residents spent the morning of their retreat with check-ins, advice, feedback, and strategic planning. In the afternoon, they celebrated Dr. Clark with a surprise baby shower and took a candle making class together.
Photo 4: The UNMC Dermatology administrative and research team spent the morning sharing presentations that they put together, got into the spooky season by painting pumpkins and volunteered at the Nebraska Humane Society where they had the opportunity to feed some of the dogs treats.
Ayla Payne (Ambulatory Supervisor)
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On October 12th, UNMC Dermatology faculty, residents, and medical students volunteered at the OneWorld Community Heath Fair on the MCC South Omaha campus offering free skin cancer screening exams to around 50 people through the American Academy of Dermatology’s “Spot Skin Cancer” program. With the help of translators and other volunteers we were able to provide a great community service on this busy morning. Thank you to everyone who showed up to help out!
This year, our team proudly participated in over a dozen community outreach events across Omaha, with some held virtually and even one in Winnebago, NE. Throughout the year, we distributed hundreds of free sunscreen packets, provided dozens of free skin cancer screenings, and educated hundreds of people on sun safety and skin cancer prevention.
These efforts were made possible thanks to the dedication of our department volunteers and the enthusiastic support of our Department Interest Group Association (DIGA) medical students. Together, we’ve made a meaningful impact in promoting healthier skin and raising awareness in the community.
Thank you to everyone who contributed to these efforts—we couldn’t have done it without you!
Madison Grinnell, MD (PGY-3 Dermatology Resident)
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Earlier this year, UNMC Dermatology was approved by ACGME to add a Mohs fellow to our program. The Mohs team hosted several fellowship applicants for shadowing opportunities over the summer and fall. This allowed applicants to better get to know our program and faculty and our faculty to get to know the applicants on a more personal level. As well as those that shadowed, our faculty reviewed numerous applications before holding our fellowship interviews on October 17th.
The long-awaited match day arrived on December 11th! Our Mohs program is extremely excited to welcome our first fellow, Hannah Porter, MD, on July 1st, 2025! Dr. Porter is currently finishing her residency at the University of Vermont but is looking forward to making the move to Nebraska.
Katie Wright (UME/GME Program Coordinator)
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Department Halloween and Holiday Party Recap | |
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, kicking off with Dermatology casting their votes for this year's Halloween costume themes being Famous Duos/Groups. And our department did not disappoint! From the unbeknownst battling of Inside Out with our surgery team and Children’s, alongside the numerous blockbuster groups ranging from the wizarding world, faithful minions with their leader, to wearing pink on Thursday (Regina made the exception) or the 90’s nostalgia of the Golden Girls, Home Alone and the clones of The Rock in their iconic black turtleneck accessorized with a fanny pack and chain. | |
Fast forward to December as we prepared for the gathering of our holiday party at A View On State, not even the unpredictable Nebraska weather was stopping us. For those who were able to safely arrive for the event enjoyed a recap of the successes Dermatology has reached while indulging in dinner and desserts amongst our VA and Children’s colleagues. Thunderous applause still broke out for all award winners, even if they weren’t present. A special thank you to our providers and leadership team for donating raffle prizes, we spread holiday cheer with gifts ranging from gift cards, Nebraska-made goodies, hockey tickets, custom portrait drawings and many more. We ended 2024 on a high note and can’t wait to ring in the New Year with a fantastic group of individuals that makes up the Department of Dermatology.
Zagee Flores (Office Associate)
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Resident's Corner
Wow, it is hard to believe it is almost the end of the year- time flies when you are having fun! But truly, the residents have been having a fun and amazing time learning all things dermatology. And this year so far has been filled with tons of learning opportunities- including cadaver labs and in person cosmetic sessions with hands on experience with lasers, botox and fillers, as well as a robust didactic schedule including guest lecturers and a competitive game of jeopardy or two. We also had an incredible grand rounds with our very own pediatric dermatologists Drs. Harter and Oudenhoven and are looking forward to our upcoming inpatient grand rounds later this month. We also attended the NDS (Nebraska Dermatology Society) meeting in Ashland, Nebraska this year where Dr. Cyndi Yag-Howard, the Vice President of AAD (American Academy of Dermatology), was the guest speaker.
It hasn’t been all just learning though, we have fun too! We have had several play dates with the little kids and celebrated birthdays. Our intramural volleyball team, The Sun Blockers, has also been going strong! Additionally, we had a super fun retreat day where we created our own candles at the Dundee Candle Co.
We have so much to be thankful for this year. Most importantly we welcomed not three, but FOUR rockstar PGY2 residents to our dermatology family in July and they have been exceling! We also have another recent new member of the dermatology family as Dr. Clark and her husband welcomed a beautiful baby girl this fall.
Our senior resident PGY4 class have been working hard on their post-residency plans. Drs. Kwan and Lloyd-McLennan have been traveling the country representing our program beautifully at away elective rotations. Dr. Fernandez has also been accepted to her top fellowship program in clinical informatics at the University of Arizona in Phoenix and we are so excited for her!
Dr. Fernandez and I joined Dr. Adams and several other dermatologists and residents from across the country in Washington, D.C. for the AADA legislative conference. We were able to go to the Capitol and meet with legislators and aides from the offices of Representative Don Bacon, Senator Deb Fischer, and Senator Pete Ricketts to discuss key advocacy issues impacting patients access to care.
We also have several residents to shout-out for their incredible achievements and awards. Dr. Sharma received the Best Trainee Abstract Award from the Epidemiology Expert Resource Group for his outstanding presentation on “Regulated Medical Waste Reduction in the Dermatology Clinic” and has had several research papers featured in the AAD emails. Dr. Lloyd-McLennan was awarded the Society for Pediatric Dermatology (SPD) mentorship award to travel to Stanford and work in their pediatric dermatology specialty clinics. And Dr. Grinnell was awarded the Women’s Dermatologic Society (WDS) Mentorship Award where she is working with Dr. Murrell in Australia this month learning more about blistering diseases and clinical trials- so cool! Dr. Kwan is also a contributor to the Time Magazine Best Read of 2024 “Lies and Weddings”. This year has been beyond incredible and we are looking forward to next year!
Taylor Thieman, MD (PGY-3 Dermatology Resident)
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As we wind down on another incredible year in the Department of Dermatology, our team has been in a place of reflection, gratitude, and renewed energy for what comes next. I could not be more proud of our entire UNMC, NM, Children's Nebraska, and VA dermatology team. This was a year of continued growth and innovation in the midst of new challenges. We have learned that each of our capabilities and creativity can rise to the occasion to further the mission.
Just a few highlights:
- Dr. Luke Witte and Dr. Jesse Hirner both joined faculty
- Expansion of our clinics and patient access at Nebraska Medicine, the VA Medical Center, and Children’s Nebraska
- ACGME approved for the first Mohs Micrographic Surgery & Dermatologic Oncology Fellowship in the state of Nebraska
- Launch of the pigmented lesions clinic and supportive oncodermatology clinic both led by Dr. Hirner. Supportive Oncodernatology focuses on support and management of skin problems caused by systemic cancer or the side effects of cancer treatment.
- Three new clinical trials kicked off along with several newly awarded grants to the department
- Our department had over 160 publications this year
- The team helped organize and volunteer at 14 community service outreach events
- Expanded our dermatology residency complement to 10 physicians in training to become dermatologists.
This year was truly an astonishing team effort, and I could not be more proud or grateful to serve alongside such dedicated and passionate individuals. We continue to close the gap of dermatologic needs for Nebraskans while tirelessly advancing research and teaching the next generation. As we look ahead to the new year, I'm excited about the opportunities that lie ahead as we push for even more for our patients. We have a strong team, a clear vision, and the determination to achieve even greater things together. We welcome you to join us in these efforts in whatever way you can!
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Erin Dahms,
NU Foundation
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Developing new clinical programs, innovative education strategies and cutting-edge research protocols depend on support from our philanthropic partners. UNMC alumni, grateful patients, and community partners have expressed an interest in learning more about our program, our opportunities to enhance the impact we have at UNMC and across Nebraska, and our vision to become a national leader in treatment, physician training, and outreach. If you would like to learn more about private gifts and partnerships in these or other areas, or about volunteering for our programs, we welcome the chance to share them with you. We are grateful for every gift, as well as each person who would like to be a part of the team serving our dermatologic community.
We have immediate needs in the following areas:
- Research Pilot Start-up Fund
- Education Funding -- Resident Education Fund, Medical Student Research Scholarships, Endowed Research Fellowship
- Patient Care and Clinical Support
- Endowed Faculty Sponsorship
For more information please contact:
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UNMC Department of Dermatology
985645 Nebraska Medical Center
Omaha, NE 68198-5645
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