Paul Nghiem Named Founding Chair of the Department of Dermatology

Paul Nghiem, MD, PhD, to serve as the Founding Chair of the UW Department of Dermatology as of March 1, 2024.

Dr. Nghiem previously served as the Head of the Division of Dermatology since 2015 and then as interim chair since October 1, 2023, when the previous Division of Dermatology became a full academic Department of Dermatology. Learn more about UW Dermatology’s transition to a department.  

"Paul has been an outstanding leader overseeing continued growth of the teaching, research, and clinical activities within the division and now department. He is very well qualified to serve as chair and I look forward to working with Paul to support his vision for the new department. Please join me in congratulating Paul and welcoming him to this important leadership position for our School."  — Timothy H. Dellit, MD, CEO of UW Medicine, Paul G. Ramsey Endowed Dean for the UW School of Medicine

Dr. Nghiem was identified as the lead candidate to serve as the founding chair of the new Department of Dermatology in fall 2023. In collaboration with the faculty, staff and trainees, Dr. Nghiem developed a proposal outlining resources needed for Dermatology to grow in clinical, research and teaching capacities, and aligning with the Department's mission and vision.

“After campaigning for a decade to bring Dermatology into Department status, I’m honored to have the opportunity to serve as Chair,” says Dr. Nghiem.  "I’m looking forward to growing our research teams and recruiting more dermatologists to take care of our patients and reduce wait times. Thanks to our phenomenal faculty and staff, we have a great foundation to build on. This foundation is further strengthened by the support we have from Dr. Dellit and others across the Medical Center. Working together as a team, I’m confident we’ll be able to navigate the growth ahead and identify new opportunities to expand our impact even further.”

Dr. Nghiem is a board-certified physician at the Fred Hutch Cancer Center, a professor in the Department of Dermatology, and an adjunct professor in the Departments of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Immunology, and Oral Health Sciences. Dr. Nghiem oversees the Nghiem Lab, a laboratory focused on the biology of skin cancer with a special focus on Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC), a rare but lethal skin cancer.