Patient cost-benefits of realtime teledermatology-a comparison of data from Northern Ireland and New Zealand

Abstract

As part of a randomized controlled trial of the costs and benefits of realtime teledermatology in comparison with conventional face-to-face appointments, patients were asked to complete a questionnaire at the end of their consultation. One hundred and nine patients took part in an initial teledermatology consultation and 94 in a face-to-face consultation. The proportion of patients followed up by the dermatologist was almost the same after teledermatology (24%) as after a hospital appointment (26%) and for similar reasons. Two hundred and three questionnaires were completed after the first visit and a further 20 after subsequent visits. Patients seen by teledermatology at their own health centre travelled an average of 12 km, whereas those who attended a conventional clinic travelled an average of 271 km. The telemedicine group spent an average of 51 min attending the appointment compared with 4.3 h for those seen at the hospital. The results of the present study, as in a similar study conducted in Northern Ireland, show that the economic benefits of teledermatology favour the patient rather than the health-care system.

Mobile teledermatology in the developing world: Implications of a feasibility study on 30 Egyptian patients with common skin diseases

“…[3][4][5][6][7][8] Store-and-forward teledermatology using digital cameras has also recently been associated with reduced patient wait times, high patient satisfaction, [9][10][11][12][13] promising diagnostic reliability, [14][15][16][17] and clinical outcomes similar to conventional, faceto-face clinical care. 18,19 To date, however, the vast majority of teledermatology studies and projects have focused on industrialized nations, whereas the potential need for teledermatology may be most profound in the developing world.…”

Teledermatology: Outcomes and Economic Considerations

“…LI teledermatology can decrease total time necessary to complete a consultation visit from the patient's perspective. For example, researchers in New Zealand found that, compared to a clinic visit, the use of LI teledermatology saved patients an average of 3.45 hours of time, primarily due to reduced traveling time (Oakley et al, 2000). However, LI teledermatology does not necessarily reduce consult time for the dermatologist (Loane et al, 1999(Loane et al, , 2001bOakley et al, 2000).…”

Priority dilemmas in psoriasis care and visions of a future care in a group of administrators, politicians and professionals in northern Sweden

“…In rural areas with large travelling distances telemedicine is considered to be a cost effective complement to conventional dermatological outpatient care [25,26]. A study in northern Norway shows that compared with the following three alternatives, (i) combination of patient travel to hospital and visiting service, (ii) patient travel to the nearest secondarycare centre and (iii) locally employed dermatologist, teledermatology was less costly of all [27].…”