The Alliance for Humane Dermatology (AHD) and its sister journal
Dermanities were launched in December of 2002 by Benjamin Barankin, MD & David J. Elpern, MD based on the lack of coverage of the humanities and patient care in the dermatology literature. While there are scores of dermatology journals globally, there are no others that consistently address this important area.
The emphasis of
Dermanities has been on patient care, physician experiences, and the interplay of medicine with the social & psychological sciences. It is complementary to
Cell 2 Soul - a medical humanities blog. Through essays, humor, poetry, and the shared collective wisdom of the global community, AHD and
Dermanities aim to enrich the dermatologic and medical community.
The Dermanities journal and Dermanities: The Blog are free, online resources which share the same mission, editorial and advisory boards. Our editors and contributors are a global selection of medical students, residents, dermatologists, other physicians, allied health professionals, and, importantly patients and their family members.
Dermanities: The Blog is an attempt to post timely articles and notices that the Dermanities community may find interesting and helpful.
Your submissions are welcome.
"Rob" Norman is a dermatologist, musician, writer, teacher and poet who lives and practices in Tampa Bay, Florida. He began writing during his undergraduate days and published several articles in the school yearbook. At present, he has published more than 100 articles in the lay and medical press and has taught creative writing for more than ten years. In 1992 he was provided with the Massachusetts Arts Lottery fellowship to teach senior citizens in creative writing; a collection of writing based on this teaching was published the same year under the title Where Wisdom Shines. In addition, he was recently selected for the national poetry project by Robert Pinsky (United States poet laureate) and interviewed on NPR.
In his spare time, Rob enjoys tennis, music, fishing, golf, and kayaking. He has written seventeen books, including the recently published To Life! (Stories and Quotes for a Happy, Healthy, and Spiritual Life). He has spoken at numerous writers' festivals where he teaches medical writing, memoir writing and autobiography, and inspirational writing.
