Integrating dermatologists in primary care: impact on delays, patient and professional experiences

Beskrivning

Abstract Background Primary healthcare centres are burdened by the management of patients with skin conditions, while general practitioners might lack the expertise to assess skin changes accurately. The traditional care chain for skin findings is a multistage process that can cause delayed diagnosis and treatment, distressing the patient. This study aimed to determine whether adding a dermatologist to the primary care team would streamline the care pathway of patients with skin conditions, while examining levels of satisfaction among patients and healthcare professionals. Methods A quasi-experimental multicentre study was conducted in three primary health centres in Finland. A dermatologist was integrated into two of the centres (intervention) but not the third (control). Data on timing of diagnosis and treatment and number of contacts were collected from records and analysed per care path. The Patient Enablement Instrument (PEI) and Net Promoter Score (NPS) were used to measure the patient’s experience of the appointment. NPS and professional satisfaction queries were used to measure professional satisfaction. Results In total 186 intervention and 176 control patients were included, with 38 primary care professionals. Compared with the control group, the intervention group showed a significantly shorter time to confirmed diagnosis and to treatment start (25 vs. 49 days, p
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Publiceringsår

2024

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Upphovspersoner

Department of Industrial Engineering and Management

Amanda Eklund Orcid -palvelun logo - Upphovsperson

Laura Huilaja - Upphovsperson

Maria Lovén - Upphovsperson

Markus Paananen - Upphovsperson

Paulus Torkki Orcid -palvelun logo - Upphovsperson

Oulu University Hospital - Medarbetare

University of Helsinki - Medarbetare

University of Oulu - Medarbetare

figshare - Utgivare

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Övriga uppgifter

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Övriga samhällsvetenskaper

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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

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