Windsor Dermatology Celebrates 30th Anniversary

When Windsor Dermatology opened its doors 30 years ago, it had one doctor, a receptionist and a handful of clients. Today, the thriving practice includes six board-certified dermatologists, an aesthetician, a newly-expanded clinical trials department and cutting-edge research facility.

This weekend, Windsor Dermatology’s medical director and founder Dr. Jerry Bagel, along with his team, will celebrate the practice’s 30th anniversary at Freedom Fest at Mercer County Park.

“I would like to thank my patients for making the past 30 years possible,” Dr. Bagel said. “Without the community’s support, none of this would have been possible.”

Dr. Bagel founded his practice on June 29, 1985. It provides comprehensive medical dermatologic care for common skin conditions, such as acne, warts and skin tags and offers the latest therapeutic advancements for psoriasis, eczema, skin cancer, vitiligo and skin allergies.

Dr. Bagel’s passion prompted him to buy two light boxes in 1985 and train his medical assistants to provide then-groundbreaking phototherapy to his patients with psoriasis. Over time, patients who once traveled to NYC or Philadelphia for treatment found their way to Windsor Dermatology’s “Psoriasis Treatment Center of Central NJ,” the state’s first complete facility for advanced psoriasis research and therapies. Dr. Bagel has become a world-renowned expert on psoriasis, speaking to international audiences and serving as a writer and editor for psoriasis publications.

Growing up on an egg farm in Hightstown, Dr. Bagel dreamed of being a doctor and practicing in a small town.

“Since my mom and dad had diabetes, I was interested in endocrinology until I took a dermatology elective,” Dr. Bagel said. “I enjoyed the fact that dermatologists take care of kids, adults and the elderly. They can also prescribe medicine and do surgery and I enjoyed that variety.”

In the second year of dermatological residency at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York, Dr. Bagel began to envision his practice.

“My parents were still living in East Windsor, so I got a 3x6 foot map of New Jersey and put pins where every dermatologist was,” Dr. Bagel said. “Then I got the population numbers from state officials in Trenton, got the estimated growth potential and determined that there was no dermatologist between Princeton and Freehold— a developing area.”

He found office space in the East Windsor Professional Park, procured an office phone number and a listing in the yellow pages and advertised in local newspapers. He used his residency vacation time to introduce himself to doctors in the area.

Dr. Bagel finished his residency on the morning of June 28, 1985. That afternoon, he saw 13 patients in his new East Windsor office. The next week, he saw 70 patients in the office, although he was still working two and a half days a week at the Fort Monmouth Clinic for veterans. His only employee was Kim Raynor, who still works with him today.

He hired his next employee within a month. Dr. Judit Stenn joined the practice in 1992, followed by Dr. David Nieves (2003) and Drs. Brian Keegan, Wendy Meyers and Matthew Halpern (2010). No doctor has ever left the practice, Dr. Bagel notes proudly.

Earlier this year, Windsor Dermatology expanded into a 3,000 square foot clinical trials department. The expansion puts a stronger emphasis on medical dermatology research and treatment through high-quality clinical trials, in which the practice has been participating since 1990. Windsor Dermatology has been involved in most of the FDA-approved psoriasis treatments during the past 25 years, Dr. Bagel said.

In September, Dr. Jessica Simon will join the practice as its first pediatric dermatologist.

Members of the practice often give local talks in the community and make bi-monthly visits to nearby assisted living centers to serve patients who are unable to come into the office. In addition, the staff actively supports the National Psoriasis Foundation.

“I love the evolution of science that has resulted in better care for our patients over 30 years,”
Dr. Bagel said. “This is my home and I want to help the community.”

Dr. Bagel attended Hightstown public schools before earning his B.A. in Biology from Boston University, his MS in Biochemistry from Rutgers University and his M.D. from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.