Provider Spotlight: Get to know Dr. Laurie Good
Dr. Good is our experienced, board-certified dermatologist who is admired by her patients and coworkers
Do you want local healthcare features such as this one sent straight to your inbox? Sign up for our virtual Living Well newsletter here.
Dr. Laurie Good, Board-Certified Dermatologist
Dr. Laurie Good approaches all things in her life with care, vigor and passion.
For nearly two years now, she has been a part of the Memorial Regional Health team, delivering the best dermatological care for our patients. Board-certified in dermatology, she is enthusiastic about serving Northwest Colorado, getting to know her patients on a personal level and increasing access to healthcare in rural areas.
Dr. Good received her bachelor’s degree from Brown University and her medical degree from Georgetown University. She completed her internal medicine internship at Exempla Saint Joseph in Denver, then moved to Milwaukee to complete her dermatology residency at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Before joining our team, she started a dermatology practice in New Mexico, where she served a multicultural rural community for 4.5 years.
Dr. Good sat down with us to discuss her professional medical background, how she approaches patient care at MRH and what inspires her to serve our local community.
Q: Were you always interested in healthcare?
Dr. Laurie Good: Not always, but I wanted to do something in the service of others. The Jesuit motto of “education for the service of others” has always spoken to me.
It was a privilege to receive the education I did, and my desire was to use that privilege to benefit others. It was that prevailing Jesuit principle that inspired me to follow my love for science into a career within medicine.
Q: What piqued your interest in dermatology?
Dr. Good: I was initially planning a career as a rural family doctor. Practicing medicine in rural and international settings — typically areas with fewer resources — was always my interest.
However, towards the end of medical school, my husband and I adopted our sons from orphanages in Vietnam. Due to delays in the processes, my husband and I wound up spending a lot of time in Vietnam. We volunteered in both of our sons’ orphanages and witnessed the impact and burden of untreated skin diseases, which were the most frequent ailments of the children we saw there.
My own child had a skin condition that was poorly understood at the time, in addition to his atopic dermatitis (eczema). Because I saw the same condition in many other children in the orphanages, I did a study defining it and helped other doctors recognize this common entity in internationally adopted children.
That interest inspired me to spend time in the field of dermatology with a great mentor from CU and realize my calling as a specialist. As it would turn out, rural areas (especially high-altitude, sunny, mountain towns) and developing countries absolutely have a need for dermatologists with a heart to problem-solve and serve.
I LOVE dermatology because it’s visual, tactile, fast-paced and a mix of performing procedures and diagnostics. It’s a relationship field, meaning I see my patients on at least an annual basis, sometimes more frequently, and that allows me to really know the people I take care of.
Dermatology care at MRH
Dr. Laurie Good and her team diagnose and treat thousands of skin diseases, providing full-spectrum skin care for patients of all ages, including children, in both Craig and Steamboat Springs. Comprehensive dermatological care offered includes:
- Skin checks and full-body skin exams for early detection of skin cancer
- Biopsies for challenging rashes, excisions of skin cancers, freezing of warts, injections for hair loss and more
- Medical treatments for conditions such as eczema, rashes, acne, psoriasis, skin cancer and more
- Surgical treatments and procedures
- Cosmetic treatments, such as Botox and microneedling
- Ongoing monitoring of skin conditions
For more information on services provided or to schedule an appointment, call 970-826-8080 or learn more here.
Dr. Good and her husband, Travis, have 4 children and a farm full of llamas, mini horses and donkeys.
Fun facts and favorites with Laurie
Click on the boxes below to learn more about Dr. Good!
Q: Why should a patient choose a board-certified dermatologist for their skincare needs?
Dr. Good: A board-certified dermatologist goes through 4 years of medical school and completes a 1-year internship in general medicine and 3 years of residency in dermatology. They must pass an intensive board exam administered by the American Board of Dermatology. Only graduates of approved dermatology residency programs are eligible to sit for that exam, which results in the FAAD credentials you see after a board-certified dermatologist’s name.
Many providers can offer treatment of skin issues; however, an MD who is residency-trained and board-certified in dermatology has spent years studying skin pathology, treating skin diseases and skin cancers. For example, skin cancers like melanoma require timely and accurate diagnoses that can be easily missed if the proper type of biopsy is not performed or the biopsy report is not interpreted accurately by the provider. This is where having a trained dermatologist is very important.
If you have a heart issue, you want someone who specializes in cardiology. If you have a tooth problem, you want someone who has specialized in dentistry. Similarly, if you have skin issues, you deserve a doctor who has devoted their career to the study of skin disease.
Q: What is your main goal in how you approach patient care?
Dr. Good: My goal is to partner with my patients in the care of their skin. Paternalistic medicine is not my style, so I don’t tell patients what they have to do.
Rather, I try to educate my patients to empower them with information and give them my best advice. I ensure to listen and be open to what they feel is the best approach for their care.
What Dr. Good’s patients are saying:
“I’ve dealt with psoriasis for more than 30 years of my life. It started when I was 13 and has worsened with age. It was horrible and all over most of my body. I couldn’t wear certain clothing or shirts because of the pain. Dr. Good got me on the right medication and I am wonderful now! She worked really hard to get my condition taken care of right away. You can’t even tell now that I had anything.”
“Dr. Good is phenomenal at giving you the information you need so you have a better understanding of your condition and what to look for in the future. I think she’s a very relatable doctor and pays attention when you are discussing your concerns with her. She’s obviously very dedicated to her profession, and I appreciated that. It’s awesome to have someone like her in the area where we all live and play in the outdoors and have more sun damage than we’re aware of!”
“I know Dr. Good was doing all she could for us. She and the MRH Dermatology nurse would call every week after his treatment to check in on Braxton! We couldn’t have asked for better care for this kiddo. Our experience was wonderful, and I would recommend anybody to Dr. Good. She is very family-oriented and kind.”
Q: What do you love most about helping patients in Northwest Colorado?
Dr. Good: I love hearing about people’s colorful lives out here. We don’t live in suburbia and, generally, rural life is so much more fascinating, challenging and dynamic than the world of cul-de-sacs and manicured lawns I grew up around.
People out here suffer from skin cancers because they work outside and love the outdoor life, not because they’re sitting in tanning beds. The risk factors for skin cancer out here tend to be activities such as ranching, haying, skiing, fishing and cycling — all activities that keep minds and bodies healthy and fulfilled.
I love doing my part to keep people’s skin healthy so they can live their mountain lives to the fullest.
Q: Is there anything else you’d like to add about your practice/professional career?
Dr. Good: People often ask, “Who should see a dermatologist?” I think a lot of people should, including anyone who just wants to understand their skin better or know what to look out for to detect skin cancer early.
I don’t say that just because I am a dermatologist and I have a bias, but because it is more often than not that we find a melanoma on a completely unsuspecting person who visits us for a routine full-body skin exam. Sure, we have people who come in asking us to check spots. But oftentimes, we convince them to have a full-body exam and the concerning spot we find is not the one they came in asking about.
