Interpersonal and communication skills development in dermatology residency: Results of a single-institution needs assessment

Interpersonal and communication skills development in dermatology residency: Results of a singleinstitution needs assessmentTo the Editor: Clinician interpersonal and communication skills are increasingly being recognized as a critical component of high-quality patient care and the ACGME Dermatology Milestones 2.0 includes 3 Interpersonal and Communication Skills (ICS) milestones.Studies have identified specialty-specific needs in residency training on these skills but no such studies have been performed in dermatology, a specialty which likely faces unique communication needs due to unusually short visits and the often chronic and incurable nature of skin conditions. 1 The purpose of this study is to understand dermatology residents' perspectives on educational content and approaches needed for effective interpersonal and communication skills development.A total of 14/16 (88%) invited postgraduate year 3 and 4 residents participated in the focus group in July 2019.A written handout was used to guide discussion (see Supplementary Appendix, available via Mendeley at https://doi. org/10.17632/kn8pmt5kk4.1).The focus group, 62 minutes in duration, was conducted by a researcher (B.K.D.), who was not known to the participants and had a nonhierarchical relationship with them.The focus group was audio recorded and transcribed using Otter.aiand manually edited to correct any errors or missing segments.Four authors participated in the coding and analysis: a male medical student (L.M.H.), a male nurse and ed-tech startup founder (B.D.), a female dermatologist and residency program director (E.E.B.), and a female dermatologist and former residency program director (K.M.N.).Two authors (L.M.H. and B.K