Biography

Dr. Deega Omar was a 2021-2022 Research Fellow in Skin of Color Dermatology working under Dr. Susan C. Taylor’s mentorship at the University of Pennsylvania. She matched in dermatology residency at the University of California – San Francisco after completing her intern year in internal medicine at George Washington University Hospital. She completed her undergraduate training at the University of Virginia where she studied anthropology and subsequently received a Master of Public Health degree. After this, she earned her medical degree at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

Dr. Omar’s research and clinical interests center on combining her background in public health with dermatology, focusing on underrepresented populations, skin of color, increasing access to care in dermatology, and dermatology community outreach. During her time at the University of Pennsylvania, she formed a Dermatology Medicaid Concierge Program with goals of department wide implementation and reduction of the burden of prior authorizations on patients and providers. She has been involved in leadership and community service for years, continuing her commitment to service through the Penn Dermatology Community Service Committee and leading a dermatology pipeline program for high school students.

She is passionate about her skin health initiative, Learn2Derm, which she co-founded to bring access to dermatologic education to underserved areas in Washington, D.C. Additionally, she helped obtain a $100,000 grant from the American Academy of Dermatology to investigate the genetics of Central Centrifugal Cicatricial Alopecia and to recruit over 300 patients for this genome-wide association study.

Fellowship in SOC Accomplishments

Publications

Omar D, Brown-Korsah JB, Taylor SC, Mollanazar N. Automated pharmacy substitution for medications not covered by Medicaid: A model for reducing the burden of prior authorizations in dermatology. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2023 Jan;88(1):258-260. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2022.09.039. Epub 2022 Sep 30. PMID: 36184007.

McKenzie S, Brown-Korsah JB, Syder NC, Omar D, Taylor SC, Elbuluk N. Variations in genetics, biology, and phenotype of cutaneous disorders in skin of color. Part II: Differences in clinical presentation and disparities in cutaneous disorders in skin of color. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2022 Dec;87(6):1261-1270. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2022.03.067. Epub 2022 Jul 8. PMID: 35817332.

Brown-Korsah JB, McKenzie S, Omar D, Syder NC, Elbuluk N, Taylor SC. Variations in genetics, biology, and phenotype of cutaneous disorders in skin of color – Part I: Genetic, biologic, and structural differences in skin of color. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2022 Dec;87(6):1239-1258. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2022.06.1193. Epub 2022 Jul 6. PMID: 35809800.

Omar D, Syder N, Brown-Korsah JB, McKenzie S, Elbuluk N, Taylor SC. Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Clinical Research and the Dermatology Workforce. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2022 Apr 4:S0190-9622(22)00544-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2022.03.052. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35390428.

Syder NC, McKenzie S, Omar D, Brown-Korsah JB, Taylor SC, Elbuluk N. Gaps in Medical Education Curricula on Skin of Color in Medical School, Residency, and Beyond. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2022 Apr 4:S0190-9622(22)00545-X. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2022.03.053. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35390429.

Brown-Korsah JB, Omar D, Wang X, Taylor SC, Rook AH, Haun PL. Factors contributing to time to chemotherapy, immunotherapy and radiation for patients with mycosis fungoides in the United States National Cancer Database. Br J Dermatol. 2023 Feb 10;188(2):299-301. doi: 10.1093/bjd/ljac069. PMID: 36763861.

Grants

Pfizer Skin of Color Research Fellowship

AAD HAIR Grant