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Soo Park, MD
Soo Park, MD
Posted: Thursday, October 17, 2024
A recent study performed by by Jose Luis Gatica, MD, and colleagues at the Teledermatology Unit of the Chilean Ministry of Health, suggests that the use of teledermatology—or virtual dermatologist appointments—may improve the prognosis of skin cancer by facilitating early diagnosis. Published in Telemedicine and e-Health, the aim of this study was to determine whether wait times at critical referral nodes during telemedicine appointments contributed to the suspicion of skin malignancies throughout the Chilean public health-care system.
“This approach not only improves accessibility but also enhances the coordination of multiple health-care agents in diagnosing and managing patients with skin cancer,” concluded the study authors. “It is evidenced that although teledermatology improves timely access for specialist evaluation, securing continuity of care in patients under suspicion of skin cancer after a telematic evaluation is also key to further improving referral times to in-person evaluation, where the management occurs.”
This cross-sectional observational study evaluated the correlation between asynchronous telemedicine consultations and whether suspicion was raised for skin malignancies following each visit. Reports from 20,522 interactions were uploaded to the Chilean Ministry of Health’s teledermatology platform from January to June 2022.
Of the total consultations, 1,853 interactions were flagged as suspicious of skin cancer; 1,119 patients were screened at an in-person appointment. For teledermatology diagnostic suggestions, the mean response time was 3.98 days. Of note, the average referral time from the initial telehealth appointment to the final in-person evaluation was 75.98 days.
There were significant differences among health-care services and geographic regions, particularly between northern, central, and southern regions (P < .0001). In comparison, this did not reign true among southern health-care services (P = .133). Overall, extended waiting times warrant the need for targeted interventions in regions with longer delays, and teledermatology may aid in optimizing referrals for oncologic consultation.
Disclosure: The study authors reported no conflicts of interest.
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