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Background: Dermatology instruction in medical school averages fewer than 10 hours and comprises less than 1% of undergraduate medical education. The majority of teaching images depict lighter skin tones, with studies showing as few as 12.7% of preclinical dermatology images representing dark/black skin. This underrepresentation contributes to diagnostic delays and care disparities for patients with skin of color. For example, individuals with skin of color wait three times longer to receive a psoriasis diagnosis compared to White patients.

Objective: To develop an interactive digital education platform that improves trainee recognition of commonly misdiagnosed dermatologic conditions in skin of color through region-specific clinical imagery and integrated histopathology.

Methods: The platform features a three-dimensional skin of color avatar with selectable anatomical regions. Users access curated kodochrome images depicting conditions as they present in darker skin tones, sourced with permission from VisualDx. Each disease module incorporates corresponding dermatopathology slides to connect clinical presentation to histologic findings. The platform was developed with the assistance of artificial intelligence tools, including Gemini and Claude, to support the design and build of the educational module. The current phase focuses on platform development with psoriasis as the pilot condition. Future phases will assess educational effectiveness through surveys and focus groups with medical trainees.

Significance: Prior work has shown that curricula enriched with skin of color content improve diagnostic confidence among trainees, and that digital dermatology modules enhance learning beyond traditional methods alone. This platform offers a scalable resource to improve diagnostic equity, with the potential to be integrated into the David Geffen School of Medicine first year medical student curriculum. Additionally, this project highlights the growing importance of leveraging artificial intelligence platforms to enhance medical education in unique, user-friendly ways such as, enabling the creation of interactive digital programs and modules that may not have been feasible through traditional development approaches alone. By improving trainee competence in recognizing dermatologic disease in underserved populations, this tool aims to reduce diagnostic disparities and improve clinical outcomes for patients of color.