TELEDerm® is an award-winning tele-dermatolgy service which provides GPs with a ‘next day’ diagnosis by a MOLE Clinic specialist expert in dermoscopy.
The service helps GPs reduce avoidable referrals to secondary care.
The service also ensures compliance with NICE Guideline [NG14], which recommends that all pigmented skin lesions that are referred for assessment should be assessed ‘using dermoscopy carried out by healthcare professionals trained in this technique.’
TELEDerm® is recommended for use by GPs and practice nurses prior to referring any patient with a suspect skin lesion to secondary care under the urgent 2 week wait rule.
A GP or nurse uses a smartphone to access the secure, web-based TELEDerm® form to record relevant patient and lesion history. The user then attaches a dermatoscope to the smartphone to add clinical and dermoscopic images of the lesion to the form.
The form is then electronically and securely transferred via WIFI to MOLE Clinic® specialists for review.
Using TELEDerm® is simple and intuitive and no training is required.
A TELEDerm® consultation with a patient normally takes around 5 minutes.
Most TELEDerm® reports are issued to GPs on a next day basis.
The report incorporates both lesion images ind includes a detailed list of dermoscopic structures both present and absent, together with relevant diagnostic indicators as an educational aid.
The report concludes with a diagnosis and recommendation in line with UK clinical guidelines.
Reports are issued in .pdf format for the GP or nurse to attach to the surgery’s electronic patient record or for onward transmission to secondary care if required.
Approximately 75% of patients with a TELEDerm® report receive welcome reassurance that their mole or sore is not skin cancer and a hospital referral is not required.
Only 25% of patients still need to be referred to their local hospital as a precaution to rule out a skin cancer.
Reducing referrals to secondary care by 75% significantly reduces pressure on hospital waiting times and should help ensure patients referred under the 2ww scheme are seen within targeted timescales.
“TELEDerm® provides reassurance quickly – that’s brilliant for patients who are not waiting for an unnecessary hospital appointment. It’s also a huge financial saving for the NHS, which is important in these times of financial constraints.”