Where are you from originally?
I grew up in Wamego, Kansas, just down the road.
What's your what's been your path to get to where you're at now?
After high school I went to Oklahoma State University. I like K-State a lot, but it was just a little too close to home. After Oklahoma State, I went to the University of Kansas Medical School for med school and my dermatology residency. After residency, I did my first Mohs fellowship in Dallas, Texas, and then another at Geisinger Health System in Danville, Pennsylvania.
What separates fellowship training from everybody else?
All we do is skin cancer removal all day, every day. I went and did two fellowships, which is unique. There's only a handful of surgeons in the entire United States that has done that. But just getting that extra training, knowing what to look for, looking under the microscope, making sure a lot of cancer is gone. That really allows me to do specialized techniques that offers a cure rate of up to 99% for these skin cancers.
What was your path coming to Heartland Dermatology?
I was looking for a practice that would really support me as a Mohs surgeon and allow me to kind of do the things that I excel at and enjoy doing the most. Heartland was a great mix, and the perfect mash-up of me looking to get back in this area and them looking for somebody to deliver excellent care here.
Do you do everything here in house?
Yep, we do everything here at the office in Manhattan. It's all outpatient. No overnight hospital stays. It's all under local anesthesia, so patients can come in and come out the same day.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I love spending time with my wife (Katie) and our dogs. I like to lift weights, and I try to golf. I'm not very good but working on that. Then, my parents still have a cattle farm north of Wamego, so I go out there and help and spend some time out there.
Getting that extra training, knowing what to look for, looking under the microscope, making sure a lot of cancer is gone. That really allows me to do specialized techniques that offers a cure rate of up to 99% for these skin cancers.