Dr. Jin-Long Zhai, MD (China)

Mentor: Dr. Martin Kassir, MD

Dallas, Texas, United States 2019

What were the major goals for your mentorship experience?

Because Dr. Kassir is a very famous cosmetic dermatologist, the major goal of my mentorship experience was to learn as many cosmetic techniques as possible. In addition, I wanted to learn what made Dr. Kassir such a successful doctor.

What did you like best about your mentorship experience? I was able to communicate with Dr. Kassir as an equal and in a relaxed manner. This is because Dr. Kassir is a really nice and easygoing person who is sincere and has a sense of humor. We talked not just about medicine, but also about history and culture.

Describe a skill acquired during your mentorship that you will definitely use when you return home. Because I watched Dr. Kassir perform injections of botulinum toxin and fillers as well as thread lifting in more than 30 patients, I think I will definitely use these techniques back in China.

Describe any special experiences with your mentor: Dr. Kassir would formulate new ideas and questions when talking with his patients. He would then ask me questions and discuss various topics with me. Since he has a broad background in internal medicine, I learned a lot about diagnostic approaches and the relationships between systemic and skin diseases. The most important advice Dr. Kassir gave me was in order to become an excellent doctor, I should not only master the common diseases, I should learn more about rare diseases.

How will your mentorship experience impact your patient care and professional goals over the next year? I was most impressed by the excellent relationships between Dr. Kassir and his patients -- they talked like friends and family. This is important for building trust between doctors and patients. My professional goals over the next year are to read more related books, to practice what I learned through this mentorship program, and to try my best to be an excellent doctor.

How will your mentorship experience make an impact five years from now, including for your region or country? This mentorship really opened my eyes and changed how I view relationships between doctors and patients. I will try to spread the idea of better medical care and provide better medical service to my patients in China. I think the impact will be for a lifetime, not just five years.

Share a pearl you learned during your mentorship experience: Dr. Kassir gave me the opportunity to learn from a very famous dermatopathologist in Dallas, Dr. Clay Cockerell, who invited me to attend an educational session with dermatology residents at UT Southwestern Medical Center. I enjoyed seeing how young American dermatology residents work and study.