Patient Engagement Through Mobile Dermoscopy

The start of May signals the beginning of Skin Cancer Awareness Month, upon which time communities will be educated on the importance of skin cancer education, understanding the risk factors, prevention methods, and early detection signs. However, it is challenging to determine what information will "stick" with patients in a way that will benefit them for their continued skin health and safety. This article discusses how digital health tools such as mobile dermoscopy devices for patients can support both medical professionals and users for skin spot monitoring.

As many as 70% of skin cancers are initially discovered by patients or their loved ones (rather than a medical professional).¹Additionally, survival rates of skin cancers heavily rely on early stage diagnosis- for example, early stage melanoma has a survival rate of over 98% in contrast to cases treated at a later stage with a rate as low as 16%.²

It is clear that optimal survival rates are intrinsically connected to the early detection of skin cancer through consistent medical imaging and patient engagement. Therefore, it is necessary to empower patients with advanced dermoscopy tools to educate, engage, and support them on their skin health journey (in addition to their standard check ups and appointments with medical experts).

Mobile Dermoscopy For Patients

To ensure patients receive fast and effective care they must understand and be involved in their skin health management process. In addition to providing patients with educational materials and practices (such as the ABCDE method for monthly skin checks, as will be seen throughout Skin Cancer Awareness Month) dermatologists are now able to offer mobile dermoscopy tools such as MoleScope for in-home use.

Patients provided with a digital dermoscope such as this are able to capture medical grade-quality images of their skin for enhanced tracking and management. Additionally, the free paired app allows patients to organize their images on an intuitive personal 3D Body Map, perform an assisted ABCDE analysis, receive helpful reminders and guides for monthly skin checks and even send images to a dermatologist in their area for feedback (if this feature is available in their region).

Helping Patients Support Dermatologists

These features empower patients to track and manage their personal skin needs, remain educated in the signs of melanoma, as well as encourage them to remain active in their continued skin health. Additionally, since patient engagement is essential for the streamlined workflows of medical professionals and ensuring optimized care outcomes for patients, technologies are a key aspect to the continued growth and improvement of the digital healthcare field.³

Research shows that Canada is facing a shortage of dermatologists, especially in remote areas.² By having patients use a mobile dermoscope such as MoleScope, dermatologists remain connected with their patients, receive medical-grade quality images, digitize their patient information, and are able to provide streamlined consultations in seconds while eliminating unnecessary in-clinic visits. This provides dermatologists with an innovative solution for providing high quality care and remaining connected with their patients (regardless of location).

Additionally, dermoscopes such as MoleScope provide medical-grade quality imaging for interested professionals, and are designed to work seamlessly with many intelligent dermatology platforms such as DermEngine. This advanced teledermoscopy software allows medical professionals to receive and analyze data to better manage patient cases and enhance connectivity through the use of features such as total body photography, clinic analytics, Visual Search (powered by artificial intelligence/AI).

Conclusion

Dermoscopes such as MoleScope empower patients to manage their skin health with in-home use. Through the use of eTriage and intelligent dermatology software such as DermEngine, medical professionals are able to provide fast, affordable, and streamlined care to their patients while encouraging the early detection of skin cancers.

-The MetaOptima Team

Are you interested in learning more about how technologies such as DermEngine (dermatology software) and MoleScope (dermatoscope) can support your practice? Download our brochure today.

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