Teledermatology for all? A service evaluation of mandatory teledermatology in Cardiff and Vale UHB 2016–17

摘要

With over 10 years of experience in providing a teledermatology service, the department of dermatology in the University Hospital of Wales now requires all general practitioner (GP) referrals to be in the form of teledermatology. Referrals are reviewed by a dermatologist within 2–3 days and may be accepted or returned with diagnosis and treatment advice. Dermatology is a topic that is taught less extensively in medical school and only a handful of GPs received dermatology training, yet around 20% of GP appointments every year concern patients with skin conditions. This results in long waiting lists for dermatology clinics and unnecessary outpatient appointments for conditions that, given the correct advice from specialists, could be actively managed by their GP. This project evaluated the teledermatology service after its first year and sought opinions from the key user groups (GPs, consultants, patients and office administrators) to identify any concerns, risks or deficiencies in the current service and potential opportunities for its future improvement.