Yes! We require a referral from your general practitioner for all new patients. This is to be able to claim for insurance purposes. We also require every patient to complete a new patient form before scheduling.

All patients who have not been seen by Dr. Curkova in the last three years will be considered a new patient and will be required to get a referral letter from their general practitioner before being able to schedule an appointment.

New patient appointments are scheduled for 30 minutes and require a lot more detail than our regular annual visits.

We understand that new patients are referred due to a specific lesion that may be worrying. In this case, we recommend that your general practitioner sends a referral to a general surgeon for removal.

For our current patients, we have spaces set aside in our schedule so that we’re able to see new concerns quickly and efficiently.

It is recommended to have a professional skin check annually, or more frequently if you have a history of skin cancer or notice any concerning changes. At home, monitor moles for the ABCDEs: asymmetry, border irregularity, color changes, diameter larger than a pencil eraser, and evolving characteristics.

Sometimes, it may be necessary to refer you to a local surgeon for excision and pathology. There are multiple general surgeons on island and one plastic surgeon that we refer to. Our office will handle the referral and you will hear from them directly.

After the initial biopsy or excision, we may need to refer you overseas for a different procedure or second opinion. We regularly refer to Brigham & Women’s Hospital but can send the referral to any hospital in your insurance companies network. Our office will contact the hospital and your insurance company and then you will hear from the hospital directly with your appointment.

Your skin is the largest organ in the body and it is important to check all of it. We use a dermascope and specialized software to track and monitor lesions for change and/or malignancy.

We will ask you to remove all your clothing except for undergarments and will give you a robe to wear while waiting for the doctor.

The dermatologist will review your chart ahead of time and check any previous lesions as well as recognizing new lesions.

Any next steps such as referrals or shave biopsies will be discussed together and you will be aware of the process.