The use of clinical photography to aid in the triage of ENT patient referrals.

Waiting lists for Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) outpatient appointments are currently the longest that they have ever been. The Aneurin Bevan University Health Board has adopted a unique Clinical Photography ENT triage service to tackle this. General Practitioner referrals are triaged by ENT consultants, to identify those patients in whom otoscopic imaging could be used to detect a serious otological condition or to enable virtual management. They are triaged to Clinical Photography, to undergo digital imaging which is reviewed in a virtual clinic alongside the initial referral. 72 patients have completed the pathway, with 51.3% discharged without requirement for face-to-face consultant appointment. 9.7% were upgraded to urgent or 2 week waits. This intervention is predicted to help identify patients on the waiting list with potentially serious disease so that they do not wait excessively, and to reduce waiting times for outpatient appointments in ENT.

Store and forward Teledermatology - the Newport way.

Teledermatology plays a vital role within Aneurin Bevan University Health Board. Alongside Consultant Dermatologists we developed Teledermatology to meet clinical needs. This article illustrates the implementation process of the service, highlighting legal and ethical issues that were considered along with the success and scope of the service. The Teledermatology service rapidly reduced waiting times for patients and increased access to specialist care which is cost effective for the Health Board. Following successful implementation and increased demand, there is the scope for expansion. The service is developing additional Teledermatology clinics within the Health Board, evolving telemedicine.