Dr. Taylor Wells became the Twin Cities' only dermatologist with training and published research on dermatology pertaining to people of color in May, after joining Core Dermatology in Normal. Across Central Illinois as a whole, Wells said there are very few dermatologists that specialize in that department, making Wells increasingly important in a community where roughly one in 10 residents is Black.
Wells spent much of her extensive schooling — 13 years between studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Meharry Medical College, University of Colorado and Howard University — learning about how misguided dermatology and the public were on treating patients of color.
In 2020, Wells was a co-author on An Analysis of Skin of Color Dermatology Related Content on Instagram, which revealed that “individuals not certified in dermatology produced 88% of top content” in skin of color-based dermatology.
Solving this issue is far from an easy fix, Wells said, and it starts with her understanding of the misrepresentation of Black and brown people in the field. Now, she's bringing that expertise to Core Dermatology’s locations in Bloomington-Normal and Peru, 60 miles north of the Twin Cities.
“I just want people to feel seen and heard and understood,” Wells said in an interview on WGLT’s Sound Ideas. “If I can be a catalyst and help get you feeling better and looking your best, so that you can go forward and be good to someone else in the world, I want to do that. That's why I do what I do.”
A jill-of-all-trades
Wells said she is very versed in the dermatology field and is a "jack-of-all-trades" for Core Dermatology. She conducts work in medical dermatology, cosmetic dermatology and surgery, while providing care for medical, cosmetic and hair health issues and concerns.
She said some of the most universal skincare issues — like eczema, fungal infections, pigmentation disorders and hair loss — appear differently on darker skin tones, require specialized diagnosis and treatment for Black and brown people.
Wells said it is still very common for doctors to misdiagnose people of color due to the lack of knowledge and personal experience.
“I understand firsthand how it sucks when you don't feel like your physician is actually seeing you, or hearing you or understanding you,” Wells said. “Having that firsthand experience— having that secondhand experience from loved ones and family members — that made me kind of want to step into that role and be able to bridge that gap.”
According to 2023 data in the Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, about 10% of dermatologists in the United States are non-white. Approximately 3.6% self-identify as Black or African American.
In the final years of Wells’ collegiate career, during a research year at Colorado plus time at Howard, a historically Black research institution, it became obvious to her that specializing in people of color was of the utmost importance to her and many around her.
“It shaped everything,” Wells said. “Because I think that just learning dermatology in that setting and understanding that sometimes people of color, when they come into these offices — they don't feel heard, they don't feel seen, they don't feel understood.”
“Howard really did help me shape the approach of just every patient is different, everybody needs to be approached differently. There's not like a one-size-fits-all, and if I can provide culturally competent care, that's what I want to do,” Wells said.
'Do more good than harm'
A specific mission that Wells has is to make her patients feel better about themselves, which she believes will lead to a greater good outside of her office.
“When people feel better, they move better through the world, they do more good than harm,” Wells said.
After all of the misrepresentation and harm Wells said the Black community has encountered through the medical community, she wants to spread good into the world. Instead of looking at previous and current problems in a negative light, Wells expressed gratitude for the opportunities she has in the field and wants to use her presence in dermatology to make a change.
“For a long time, people that look like me… people of color weren’t included in conversations on a medical standpoint,” Wells said. “But now we're in the field, we're observing things, making decisions, doing research and everything.”
Despite an increase in Black people working in medical professions, Wells said the specific skincare and hair care issues for the community are still incredibly apparent.
Wells said that to continue to improve in dermatology for people of color, there needs to be stronger investing in mentorship programs and research.
“I think it's just going to take them [dermatology as a whole] not — not just saying that you want to serve patients of color, but putting action behind that,” Wells said.
Wells said there is still a long way to go in reaching an expansive amount of dermatology for people of color, but she hopes to be strong catalyst for the movement.
