Our Providers

• Dale Westrom, MD, PhD
• Holly Christman, MD
• Julie Plante, MD (formerly Julie Philp, MD)
• Susan Amaturo, MD
• Kathryn Kent, MD
• Christen Thompson, DCNP

    Dale Westrom, MD, PhD

Dr. Westrom grew up in Sonoma County and has practiced dermatology in Santa Rosa since 1988. In addition to receiving an M.D. degree, with honors, from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. he previously earned a Ph.D. in Parasitology from U.C. Berkeley and a B.S. degree in Entomology at U.C. Davis. He completed his dermatology residency at Letterman Army Medical Center in San Francisco and has been board certified in dermatology since 1985. He is also committed to training, research, and teaching in tropical medicine, especially as it relates to skin diseases.

He has been awarded several major academic honors including Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society in 1980, the Merck Award for Medicine in 1980, Teacher of the Year at UCSF's Department of Dermatology in 1991, and a Special Recognition Award for his outstanding contribution as a clinical professor of dermatology in 2001. He was recognized as one of the top 500 physicians in the San Francisco Bay Area (San Francisco Magazine, 2005). He has published many papers in major journals and has presented his work at local, regional, and national meetings.

His medical and scientific affiliations include: The American Academy of Dermatology, the Pacific Northwest Dermatology Society, The San Francisco Dermatology Society, The California Medical Association, and the Sonoma County Medical Association. He is on the medical staff of Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, Sutter Hospital, and Healdsburg District Hospital.  He is an Associate Clinical Professor of Dermatology at UCSF.

Dr. Westrom thoroughly enjoys practicing medical, pediatric, geriatric, surgical, and cosmetic dermatology. He also has a special interest in psoriasis education and treatment.

    Holly Christman, MD

Dr. Christman has been a practicing Mohs surgeon for over ten years. She received her medical training at the University of California, San Francisco, including a fellowship in Mohs and dermatologic surgery. She then joined the faculty at UCSF as associate clinical professor in the Mohs and dermatology surgery unit of the Department of Dermatology. During that time she was also head of Mohs and dermatologic surgery at the Veterans Administration Hospital in San Francisco.

Dr. Christman is board certified in dermatology and a fellow at American College of Mohs Micrographic Surgery and Cutaneous Oncology.

Her other professional interests include laser surgery, sclerotherapy surgery, and cosmetic dermatology.

    Julie Plante, MD (formerly Julie Philp, MD)

Julie Plante (formerly Julie Philp) was born and raised in Santa Rosa, California. She received her B.A. in human biology from Stanford University in 1997. After a brief stint in academia in the field of cultural psychology, she decided to pursue a career in medicine. She graduated from Stanford Medical School in 2005, then spent a year doing pediatric palliative care at the University of California, San Francisco, before starting her residency in pediatrics. During her residency, she did a rotation in pediatric dermatology and realized dermatology was her true calling. Immediately after finishing her residency in pediatrics, she began her residency in dermatology, also at UCSF.

She is now board certified in both pediatrics and dermatology. She enjoys seeing both adults and children.

In her spare time, Dr. Plante enjoys international travel (she recently spent a month in Durban, South Africa, working at a dermatology clinic). She likes hiking, backpacking, yoga, jogging and spending time with her family and friends.

     Susan Amaturo, MD

Dr. Susan Amaturo is a board certified dermatologist, and has been practicing dermatology for 25 years. She was born in Sacramento, CA and has resided in Sonoma County for over 15 years. She obtained her B.A. degree in economics from Stanford University and her medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco. After her internship in internal medicine at the University of Chicago School of Medicine, she completed her dermatology residency at the University of California Irvine. She sees patients in the Santa Rosa and Healdsburg locations, and performs Mohs surgery, surgical and cosmetic procedures.

In her free time, Dr. Amaturo enjoys spending time with her husband and twin daughters.

    Kathryn Kent, MD 

Dr. Kathryn Kent is a board certified dermatologist and fellowship trained dermatologic surgeon. She specializes in skin cancer surgery and cosmetic dermatology. Dr. Kent completed her medical training at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, where she was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society, before completing her surgical internship as part of the integrated plastic surgery program at Brown University. After spending a year as a post-doctoral reserach fellow at the Harvard Skin Disease Reserach Center, Dr. Kent completed her residency in dermatology at Boston University where she was a recipient of the Women's Dermatologic Society Mentorship award.

Dr. Kent has advanced fellowship training in Mohs surgery as well as cosmetic dermatology and laser procedures. She completed her Mohs fellowship at SkinCare Physicians in Boston, MA, and is an Associate Member of the American College of Mohs Surgery. She completed her fellowship training in cosmetic dermatologic surgery under faculty from Yale and Brown University through an American Society for Dermatologic Surgery accredited program. Dr. Kent is a member of the American Academy of Dermatology, American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, American College of Mohs Surgery, American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery, and Women's Dermatologic Society.

   Christen Thompson, DCNP

Christen Thompson, DCNP (Dermatology Certified Nurse Practitioner)  joined Redwood Empire Dermatology in 2005. She has specialized in dermatology since 1999. Christen earned B.S. degrees in biochemistry and psychology from the University of California at San Diego, and a B.S. degree in nursing from Georgetown University. Her M.S. degree (nurse practitioner) was earned from University of Washington in Seattle. Christen provides evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of skin cancers, psoriasis, eczema, acne and other skin disorders. 

back to top