The Cornwall dermatology electronic referral and image-transfer project

An evaluation of a store-and-forward electronic referral system was carried out in Cornwall to gauge its effectiveness in prioritizing dermatological patients needing secondary care. A dermatologist classified patients to be seen according to need based on information on the electronic referral form along with an image of the skin condition. Initial findings indicated that patients were more accurately triaged in at least 50% of cases and that 25 % of patients did not require an outpatient dermatological appointment. Der matologists rated image quality at 7.5 on a 10-point scale. This low-cost s ystem has potential for more appropriate clinical management of dermatologi cal patients in both primary and secondary care.