Implementation and Impact of a Dermoscopy-Enabled Dermatology eConsult Application in Primary Care

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Telemedicine
• Dermatology

Background:

• Primary care providers (PCPs) face challenges in dermatology care access.
• Existing eConsult programs struggle with image quality and workflow efficiency.
• Dermoscopy integration is often lacking in current eConsult solutions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of a dermoscopy-enabled eConsult device (DermLoop) on dermatology referrals.
• To assess the adoption, implementation, and effectiveness of DermLoop in a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) setting.
• To improve access to dermatology care for underserved populations.

Main Methods:

• A quality improvement study utilized the RE-AIM framework.
• A dermoscopy-enabled eConsult device (DermLoop) was introduced to PCPs.
• Dermatology referrals were compared pre- and post-DermLoop implementation over 9-month periods.

Main Results:

• Sixty-nine PCPs submitted 560 DermLoop eConsults for 526 patients.
• PCPs submitted a higher proportion of eConsults versus in-person visits post-implementation (28.6% vs 17.3%).
• Most eConsults (79.8%) enabled patients to bypass a face-to-face visit, with high user satisfaction and improved image quality.

Conclusions:

• Widespread adoption of DermLoop eConsults enhanced dermatology care delivery.
• The system effectively provided care to Medicaid-insured and uninsured patients.
• DermLoop addresses key limitations in dermatology eConsult workflows, improving PCP acceptance and patient access.