Year: 2023 | Month: November | Volume: 13 | Issue: 11 | Pages: 317-321
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijhsr.20231138
Teledermatology: An Alternative Service Delivery Channel for Outpatient Care During COVID-19 Pandemic in a Tertiary Government Healthcare Facility in Rural Area
Dr Vikrant Kanwar1, Dr. Puneet Khanduja2, Dr. Nisha Salaria3, Sushila Kumari4
1Assistant Professor, Department of Hospital Administration AIIMS Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh, India
2Senior Manager and Lead, Health and Nutrition Microsave consulting, New Delhi, India
3Free-lancer Researcher, Himachal Pradesh, India
4Nursing Officer, AIIMS, Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh, India
Corresponding Author: Dr Vikrant Kanwar
ABSTRACT
Background: The pandemic of coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) has resulted in massive disruptions and changed the way we live. There has been extensive advocacy for social distancing norms and lockdowns which have largely impacted the outpatient healthcare delivery in hospitals. In recent past, there is a perceived urgent need of shifting from, in person visits to virtual care in the field of tele dermatology. This study reports the implementation and utilization of tele dermatology services during different phases of COVID-19 pandemic.
Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective observational study that identified all in-person and teledermatology outpatient nonprocedural visits in the month of January and March 2020 (before Covid 19), May (during lockdown) and July (after lockdowns) 2020, at a single healthcare academic institution. Tele consult volumes were assessed weekly and consultation patterns were compared.
Results: The results depict sharp 100% fall in physical in person dermatology consultations during lockdown and a complete 100% transitions towards the teledermatology and this trend continue even after lockdown where the tele-dermatology consultations were sought as 30% of total consultations.
Discussion: In a relatively short time frame of 4 weeks during lockdown, a single healthcare center was able to dramatically shift to teledermatology visits to provide outpatient dermatology care and thereafter it becomes new normal way of getting consultation.
Conclusions: This study depicts that teledermatology can be an alternative for outpatient dermatology care while the government delivery systems quickly adapt to new normal. There is a realized potential to expand tele-health services to improve access to healthcare for masses.
Key words: Teledermatology, Telemedicine, Healthcare, COVID-19