Teledermatology in South Dakota: Uses and Patient Centered Improvement in a Rural Setting

Dermatologic conditions account for a large proportion of healthcare visits in the United States, yet there continues to be barriers to dermatologic care particularly among the rural and underserved populations. Patients among these populations are particularly vulnerable to poor outcomes and increased morbidity. Teledermatology offers a potential solution to increase access to high-quality dermatologic care. Studies have previously examined the convenience, cost-effectiveness, and clinical efficacy of teledermatology compared to in-person dermatology visits. There is a need to assess which populations are appropriate and in what settings teledermatology can be most effective. We surveyed patients of a South Dakota dermatology practice to assess perceptions and experiences with teledermatology visits in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Significant factors leading patients to prefer in-person visits compared to teledermatology were being over the age 65 (OR 2.9 95 percent CI 1.9,3.8 and p-value 0.036) or experiencing technical difficulties during the visit (OR 2.9 95 percent CI 1.9,3.9 and p-value 0.048). We found the chief complaint played an important role in patient preference for visit modality. Patients with acne or acne follow up compared to all other chief complaints had a strong preference for teledermatologic visits (OR 4.7 95 percent CI 4.0,5.4 and p-value 0.000018) whereas patients with possible malignant lesions strongly preferred having an in-person visit (OR 6.6 95 percent CI 5.5,7.8 and p-value 0.0004). Based on these results, we suggest a targeted use of teledermatology with pre-visit screening measures to maintain a patient center approach and avoid redundant visits.