We are currently trialling a new service called teledermatology. These clinics take place in the community at a number of GP practices and may prevent the need for you to attend the hospital site for your condition.
Where clinically appropriate, your Dermatology Consultant may refer you to this service. At your teledermatology appointment the medical photographer will take two different types of photographs of your skin lesion using a specialist Dermatology lens. These images will then be reviewed by a consultant dermatologist along with medical history provided by yourself and from the initial GP referral. They will usually follow you up by letter within 3 weeks of your appointment with an explanation of the findings and management plan. This may be a treatment that can be obtained from your GP, a review in clinic or surgery.
Referrals
If you are referred to the service, information for the appointment will be provided upon booking, however if you have any questions please contact 01223 806000. After your appointment, you may be contacted to complete a patient survey about your experience using this service.
Patient feedback on Teledermatology service
A patient experience survey was carried out in January 2021 with a view to identifying patient experience of the pilot teledermatology service. 188 patients were seen and sent a survey between October 2020 and November 2020. We received feedback from 111 of these patients.
These findings were wholly positive, with comments around the efficiency and effectiveness of the service. Patients were encouraged to identify areas for improvement and mostly these related to improving the information received before and after their teledermatology appointment. Several patients highlighted that they would have preferred a full body skin check in addition to those lesions they were referred for. This is not something that the teledermatology service is designed to provide at this time. We have acknowledged these comments and have adapted our patient information leaflet to reflect this.