During his sophomore year at the Catholic High School for Boys in Little Rock, Ray Parker made a landmark decision. He would study medicine, as his prominent surgeon grandfather, Stephen Zieman, MD, his mother, Stephanie Parker, RN, and healthcare provider aunts and uncles had done. The suggestion that spurred his medical profession pursuit came from a family member outside the healthcare profession – his dad, Ray Kohler Parker Sr., an architect.

“That one suggestion prompted me to pursue pre-med,” said Parker, a dermatologist in private practice at the Dermatology Group of Arkansas in Little Rock.

The oldest of three boys, Parker had grown up in Alabama until the second grade, when the family relocated to Little Rock. At the college-preparatory Catholic High School for Boys, studies focused on Christian formation and quality academics, along with the “truth of manhood: faith, integrity … and duty.”

After graduating cum laude in 1985 with a biology degree from Westminster College in Fulton, Mo., he earned a medical degree in 1990 and completed a residency in dermatology in 1994 at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS). 

“During medical school, Dr. Renie Bressinck, my current partner—and my dermatologist as an adolescent—greatly steered me toward dermatology by encouraging and allowing me to shadow him while he worked,” said Parker. “Also, Drs. Thomas Jansen, Jere Guin, and Scott Dinehart gave me opportunities for success in dermatology as well as provided help and guidance with research and publications.”

For 17 years, Parker has practiced with the Dermatology Group of Arkansas and its partners, Renie Bressinck, MD, Dan Smith, MD, Francine Bruyneel, MD, Hayden Franks, MD and Ahmad Brown, MD. He practices in the Little Rock and Benton offices of the Dermatology Group, which also has clinics in Pine Bluff, Texarkana and Clinton.

“The physicians, the entire staff, and especially my nurse, Laurel, make working and seeing patients every day a real joy,” he said. 

Parker’s research experience includes participation in a dozen clinical trials, from “Vehicle Controlled Double-Blind Study to Assess the Safety and Efficacy of Imiquimod 5 percent Cream Applied Once Daily 2 Days per Week for the Treatment of Actinic Keratoses on the Head” to “A Phase III Multicenter Study of the Safety and Efficacy of an Injectable TNF in Psoriasis” to “A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo Controlled Study of the Safety and Efficacy of a Fluconazole Topical Patch in the Treatment of Distal Subungual Onychomycosis of the Great Toenail.”

Parker is a founding member of the Arkansas Foundation for Skin Cancer, board president for The Allen School for Exceptional Children, alumni member of Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society and a member of Sigma Chi National Fraternity. He travels frequently to Saint Elizabeth’s Health Center in Gould to care for indigent patients who have little or no access to dermatology care. 

“My patients motivate and inspire me every day,” said Parker. “We live in an exciting time where advances in the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer are happening at an extremely fast rate. Diagnosing and treating skin cancer patients now and in the future keeps me engaged and excited. I look forward to the day when all cancer, and particularly skin cancer, is curable and treatable.” 

When he’s not at work, Parker enjoys exercise typically consisting of a balanced menu of running, walking and weight training. He’s completed four marathons and participates twice a week in exercise “boot camp.” He also enjoys playing golf, traveling, and spending time with immediate and extended family. 

“I remain close to both of my brothers – one lives in Atlanta and the other in Little Rock,” said Parker. “We have a lively family with three teenagers – Austin 17, Rachel 14, Cameron, 13 – and my beautiful wife, Wendy. All three play soccer for Little Rock Futbol Club.”

Parker and his wife relish walking their two dogs – Hudson, a 7-year-old dachshund beagle mix, and Lulu, a 7-year-old teacup Yorkie. They enjoy traveling especially to St. John and Las Vegas for fun, to visit family in Fairhope, Ala., and of course, to multiple soccer tournaments. 

“Wendy inspires me every day to be the best I can be and to always be thankful for what I have in life,” he said.

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