Meet Our Board Certified Physicians
Dr. Stonecipher earned his medical degree from East Tennessee State University in 1986. After completing his residencies and chief residencies in Internal Medicine in 1989 at East Tennessee State University and in Dermatology in 1993 at Wake Forest University, he entered private practice with Dermatology Associates of Georgia, L.L.C. and is a current partner. He is Board Certified in Dermatology and Internal Medicine. Dr. Stonecipher and his wife, Lisa, have six children. They enjoy travel, cooking and music. Dr. Stonecipher is a member of AAD, AMA, ADA and AOA, the medical honor society.
Dr. McAlvany earned her medical degree from the University of Florida in 1987. After completing her residencies and chief residencies in Pediatrics in 1991 at Emory University and in Dermatology in 1994 at Wake Forest University, she entered private practice. She joined Dermatology Associates of Georgia, LLC in 1996 and is a current partner. She is Board Certified in Dermatology and Pediatrics. Dr. McAlvany and her husband, William, have four children.
Dr. Mauldin is a native of Little Rock, Arkansas. After graduating summa cum laude from Hendrix College he moved to Houston, Texas to study medicine. He graduated with high honors from Baylor College of Medicine in 1995 and also completed his internship in internal medicine there in 1996. During his time in Houston, he developed an interest in Dermatology which led him to Emory University. At Emory, he served as chief resident and graduated in 1999. He joined Dermatology Associates of Georgia in July of 1999 and became a partner 2 years later. He now serves as site partner at the Decatur office. His interests include general medical dermatology and skin cancer surgery. Dr. Mauldin is certified by the American Board of Dermatology. Dr. Mauldin has lived in Decatur for 11 years and enjoys spending time with his wife, Lisa, and daughters, Melissa and Natalie.
Dr. Susan Spitzler graduated magna cum laude from Brandeis University with a Bachelor of Arts in Neuroscience and Psychology. She subsequently graduated from Emory University School of Medicine. After completing two years of a pediatric residency at the University of Connecticut she went on to complete her dermatology residency at Emory University. Dr. Spitzler joined Dermatology Associates of Georgia, L.L.C. in July 2001 and is a current partner. She is board certified in dermatology and is a member of the AAD. Her comprehensive dermatology practice focuses on adults as well as children.
Dr. Hanson is a native of Missoula, MT. She graduated magna cum laude from Duke University in 1995 and subsequently earned her PhD in immunology from Washington University in 2000. She then studied medicine at Cornell University where she became a member of AOA, the medical honor society. She graduated in 2004 with her MD and honors in research. Dr. Hanson completed her dermatology residency at Emory University in 2008 and is certified by the American Board of Dermatology. She joined Dermatology Associates of Georgia in November of 2008 and is a current partner. She and her husband, Arash, have two children, Amelie and Ashton, and enjoy travel, fly fishing, music and having fun in the outdoors.
Dr. Chen earned her medical degree at Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China in 1982 as the youngest medical graduate in the country at that time and her Ph.D at Beijing University, Beijing, China in 1986. She came to the United States for her postdoctoral training in 1986 and become a faculty member of the Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas from 1987-1993. After completing her residencies and chief residency in Pathology in 1997 at George Washington University and Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, she further specialized in Dermatopathology at Columbia University, New York in 2001. Dr. Chen is certified by both the American Board of Dermatology and the American Board of Pathology. She has been in private practice for 16 years. She was a partner at Dermatology Associates of Palm Beaches for 8 years before she joined Dermatology Associates of Georgia, L.L.C as a dermatopathologist in 2011. Dr. Chen and her husband, Jimmy, have two children and enjoy outdoor activity and travel.
Dr. Carl Washington joined Dermatology Associates of GA after spending 23 years on the faculty of Emory University School of Medicine Department of Dermatology, where he was involved in the training of 18 Fellows in Mohs Surgery, and hundreds of Dermatology Residents. He completed medical school at The University of Michigan, and a residency in Dermatology at Henry Ford Hospital. Following this, he completed a Fellowship in Mohs and Dermatology Surgery at Duke University School of Medicine. At Emory, and at Dermatology Associates of Georgia, Dr. Washington’s clinical expertise is in Mohs Surgery for the management of skin cancer, and the treatment of patients with melanoma and high risk pigmented lesions. Dr. Washington also treats a variety of other dermatologic surgical and cosmetic conditions. Dr. Washington is a member of the American Academy of Dermatology, the American College of Mohs Surgery, the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, and is currently President of the Atlanta Association for Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery. He is also a member of the American Dermatological Association, and a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. He and his wife have 4 children.
Dr. Apgar attended Cornell University and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from the Georgia Institute of Technology. After completion of medical school at Emory University in Atlanta and two years of internal medicine training at Cornell Cooperating Hospitals in New York, he returned for dermatology residency at Emory, and became board certified in 1976. He has been in private practice for 35 years, served on the faculty of Emory Department of Dermatology for five years, and joined Dermatology Associates of Georgia, L.L.C. in January 2001. His interests include contact allergies of the skin, and his current practice is restricted to consultations for allergy patch testing and evaluation of rashes. When not in the office, Dr. Apgar enjoys hiking, mountain biking, travel, reading, and model trains; as well as spending time with his four grandchildren and a daughter in high school.
Dr. Murad is a long-time Atlanta resident. She graduated from Emory University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology. Before continuing on to medical school, she worked as a research specialist in the Biochemistry department of Emory University studying the role of reactive oxygen species in a variety of cancers. She then attended Morehouse School of Medicine where she graduated cum laude in 2005. After completing her internship in Internal Medicine from the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in 2006, she returned to Atlanta to complete her Dermatology residency at Emory University in 2009. Throughout her medical training, Dr. Murad continued to focus her research on reactive oxygen species and under the guidance of her mentor, Dr. Jack Arbiser, has had numerous publications in a variety of scientific journals. She joined Dermatology Associates of Georgia in October 2009 and is certified by the American Board of Dermatology. Dr. Murad is a member of the American Academy of Dermatology and the Atlanta Dermatological Association.
Dr. Rodriguez earned a Bachelor of Arts degree with concentrations in Biology and French from Boston College. Throughout her training, she has focused on cancer biology and melanoma research. She received a research training award from the National Institutes of Health and has publications in multiple peer-reviewed journals. She completed medical school and internal medicine internship at New York University School of Medicine (2005-2010). She then moved to Atlanta, GA for dermatology residency at Emory University School of Medicine (2010-2013), where she served as a chief resident. Dr. Rodriguez has trained alongside Dr. Apgar in allergy patch testing and is now available to see patch testing patients in addition to her regular dermatology patients at Johns Creek. She is fluent in Spanish and has conversational skills in French. In addition to medical dermatology, she enjoys food, travel, hiking and spending time with her husband, Conor.
Dr. Cotes was raised in New Hampshire and received her Bachelor of Arts at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, before completing her medical training at Dartmouth Medical School. Following receipt of her medical degree she completed an internship in General Surgery at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center before moving to Atlanta to pursue her Dermatology training at Emory University. Following her residency, Dr. Cotes continued her surgical training at Emory as a fellow in Procedural Dermatology. She joined Dermatology Associates of Georgia in 2015. Her clinical interests include Mohs surgery and all aspects of cutaneous oncology, as well as cosmetic and general dermatology. She is board certified by the American Board of Dermatology and a member of AAD, ASDS, and AADDS, as well as a candidate for membership with the American College of Mohs Surgery.
Dr. Cotes and her husband enjoy exploring new restaurants, cooking, travel, and spending time with their son and two dogs.
Dr. Cotes and her husband enjoy exploring new restaurants, cooking, travel, and spending time with their son and two dogs.
Dr. Rice was born and raised in Seattle, Washington graduating from Lakeside High School. She then obtained her undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology from Princeton University. Returning back to Seattle, she attended the University Of Washington School Of Medicine.
Dr. Rice is triple boarded in dermatology, pediatric dermatology, and pediatrics. Her pediatric training was at Seattle Children’s and her dermatology training was at the Emory University School Of Medicine in the Department of Dermatology. She served as chief resident in her senior year of both respective residency programs.
Over the last 10 years, Dr. Rice has been active in the Emory Dermatology Department. Prior to her departure, she was the Director of the Clinical Trials Unit in the Dermatology Center for Outcomes Research and Safety, serving as a principal or co- investigator in about 30 clinical trials, and the Dermatology Department Media Liaison, contributing to CNN and Fox News medical segments, Allure magazine, and Web MD. Additionally, she has several peer-reviewed publications in the top dermatology journals, including JAMA Dermatology, Journal of American Academy of Dermatology, and Dermatologic Surgery Journal. Also during her tenure, she contributed to the in the training of over 100 residents. She continues to be actively involved as an Adjunct Clinical Professor.
Of note, Dr. Rice is a devoted wife to Ret. Captain William S. Rice (together 20 years and counting) and proud mother of two amazing daughters, Windland and Willow. Together they enjoy reading, dancing, swimming and traveling the world.
Dr. Rice is triple boarded in dermatology, pediatric dermatology, and pediatrics. Her pediatric training was at Seattle Children’s and her dermatology training was at the Emory University School Of Medicine in the Department of Dermatology. She served as chief resident in her senior year of both respective residency programs.
Over the last 10 years, Dr. Rice has been active in the Emory Dermatology Department. Prior to her departure, she was the Director of the Clinical Trials Unit in the Dermatology Center for Outcomes Research and Safety, serving as a principal or co- investigator in about 30 clinical trials, and the Dermatology Department Media Liaison, contributing to CNN and Fox News medical segments, Allure magazine, and Web MD. Additionally, she has several peer-reviewed publications in the top dermatology journals, including JAMA Dermatology, Journal of American Academy of Dermatology, and Dermatologic Surgery Journal. Also during her tenure, she contributed to the in the training of over 100 residents. She continues to be actively involved as an Adjunct Clinical Professor.
Of note, Dr. Rice is a devoted wife to Ret. Captain William S. Rice (together 20 years and counting) and proud mother of two amazing daughters, Windland and Willow. Together they enjoy reading, dancing, swimming and traveling the world.