Improving dermatology access: A retrospective review of a rural dermatology eConsult initiative
Rachel E. Blansfield, Jeffrey J. Miller, Bryan E. Anderson, Brian P. Green, James P. Strassner, Maria I. Longo-Imedio, Christopher G. BazewiczIntroduction
Electronic consultations (eConsults) between primary care providers and dermatologists improve access to dermatologic care, particularly in rural areas.
Data and Results
We conducted a single-institution retrospective review of the electronic medical records of 1468 patients who received a dermatology eConsult from February 1 st , 2024, to January 31 st , 2026. The median response time for an eConsult was 11.5 hours (IQR: 2.0 – 20.6 hours). Of the total patients, 1202 (82.3%) were new patients and 717 (49.0%) were successfully managed without needing an in-clinic appointment, with the most common reason for in-person evaluation being a suspicious skin lesion (67% of cases). 147 (10.0%) patients were seen in-clinic and diagnosed with a skin cancer.
Conclusion
Our findings highlight the impact of our dermatology eConsult initiative and expand on previous reports regarding eConsult initiatives, serving as a guide for other dermatology programs who wish to implement eConsults with their primary care colleagues.