Consultant Connect and NHS Scotland are marking 12 months since the national rollout of Scotland’s Digital Dermatology Pathway began. The programme is transforming patient care allowing clinicians to securely capture and share dermatology images for referrals and access specialist advice.
The pathway enables GPs and other NHS clinicians to safely capture high quality images using the Consultant Connect App and attach them directly to dermatology referrals through Scotland’s National Digital Platform (NDP). Over the past year, the programme has expanded to national level, with all 14 NHS Health Boards live and actively using the service.
The technology in numbers
- 535 GP practices have used the application
- 1,886 individual clinicians have used the service
- 13,082 patient dermatology referrals have been submitted with images attached via the NDP
- More than 25,000 dermatology patient sessions have been completed, generating almost 50,000 images to support diagnosis and referral decisions.
These developments mean patients are receiving more comprehensive, faster care. In one recent case, a patient with a worsening skin rash saw their GP on three occasions and tried several treatments without improvement. By using the Consultant Connect App, the GP captured images and received a response from a dermatologist the following day, with a new treatment plan.
The GP was then able to contact the patient immediately and begin treatment, leading to quick improvement. Without access to the Digital Dermatology Pathway, the patient could have faced a wait of up to 40 weeks for a dermatology appointment in their local Health Board. Instead, they received appropriate care within 48 hours.
As part of the rollout, Consultant Connect introduced an integration with the Community Health Index (CHI) number, the system used across Scotland to check patient details. This integration automatically pulls through important patient data, such as date of birth and full name, supporting accurate record-keeping. A further improvement allows Primary Care referrers to attach dermatology images directly from the NDP when making a referral to Secondary Care services.
Stephen Lamb, Customer Success Manager, Consultant Connect, said: “This programme represents a significant national first, demonstrating how innovation can be applied at scale to support clinical decision-making. By strengthening the triage process, the pathway is enabling quicker dermatology diagnoses and more timely access to care.
We are proud to have worked in close partnership with the team to deliver a robust, national solution that is already benefiting patients across the country.”
Craig Millar, Digital Dermatology Project Manager, CfSD said: We are also very proud to have worked with Consultant Connect to implement the technology and pathway across all Health Boards in Scotland.
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“It is a great example of collaborative working across a number of teams, along with the Health Boards, to deliver this at scale and now start to see some of those benefits the pathway is expected to provide.
While Health Boards are at different stages of adopting the Digital Dermatology pathway, we are seeing the percentage of referrals with images increase, with around 20% more images being attached to referrals than the same time last year. Fewer patients are being added to a Dermatology waiting list, which is good news for patients and highlights the importance of including an image to a Dermatology referral, and empowering clinical decision making.
