ArticleFrontiers in public health2014
Teledermatology in Low-Resource Settings: The MSF Experience with a Multilingual Tele-Expertise Platform.
Article in Frontiers in public health, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Mobile Health Strategies to Tackle Skin Neglected Tropical Diseases With Recommendations From Innovative Experiences: Systematic Review.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2020Pooled it
- Promoting Reciprocal Relationships with Flexibility, Coaching, and Teaching (PRRFCT Match): A Virtual Parent-Mediated Intervention Package for Young Children with Developmental Disabilities.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2025Article
- Current management of skin conditions in Kenya: exploring teledermatology preferences and perspectives among providers.International journal of women's dermatology · 2025Article
- Acceptance of Telemedicine Compared to In-Person Consultation From the Providers' and Users' Perspectives: Multicenter, Cross-Sectional Study in Dermatology.JMIR dermatology · 2023Article
- Teledermatology Evaluation and Feedback Systems: A Tool for Improving Care.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- A scoping review of the use of e-learning and e-consultation for healthcare workers in low- and middle-income countries and their potential complementarity.Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association : JAMIA · 2022Article
- The potential use of digital health technologies in the African context: a systematic review of evidence from Ethiopia.NPJ digital medicine · 2021Review
- Teledermatology Use in Remote Areas of French Guiana: Experience From a Long-Running System.Frontiers in public health · 2019Article
- Improving Equity of Access Through Electronic Consultation: A Case Study of an eConsult Service.Frontiers in public health · 2019Article
- Long-Range Diagnosis of and Support for Skin Conditions in Field Settings.Tropical medicine and infectious disease · 2018Article
- Médecins Sans Frontières' Clinical Guidance mobile application: analysis of a new electronic health tool.Public health action · 2015Article
- Telemedicine in low-resource settings.Frontiers in public health · 2015Article
- User Feedback on the MSF Tele-Expertise Service After a 4-Year Pilot Trial - A Comprehensive Analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2015Article
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionIn 2010, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) launched a tele-expertise system to improve the access to specialized clinical support for its field health workers. Among medical specialties, dermatology is the second most commonly requested type of tele-expertise. The aim of the present study was to review all MSF teledermatology cases in the first 4 years of operation. Our hypothesis was that the review would enable the identification of key areas for improvement in the current MSF teledermatology system.
methodsWe carried out a retrospective analysis of all dermatology cases referred by MSF field doctors through the MSF platform from April 2010 until February 2014. We conducted a quantitative and qualitative analysis based on a survey sent to all referrers and specialists involved in these cases.
resultsA total of 65 clinical cases were recorded by the system and 26 experts were involved in case management. The median delay in providing the first specialist response was 10.2 h (IQR 3.7-21.1). The median delay in allocating a new case was 0.96 h (IQR 0.26-3.05). The three main countries of case origin were South Sudan (29%), Ethiopia (12%), and Democratic Republic of Congo (10%). The most common topics treated were infectious diseases (46%), inflammatory diseases (25%), and genetic diseases (14%). One-third of users completed the survey. The two main issues raised by specialists and/or referrers were the lack of feedback about patient follow-up and the insufficient quality of clinical details and information supplied by referrers. DISCUSSION: The system clearly delivered a useful service to referrers because the workload rose steadily during the 4-year study period. Nonetheless, user surveys and retrospective analysis suggest that the MSF teledermatology system can be improved by providing guidance on best practice, using pre-filled referral forms, following-up the cases after teleconsultation, and establishing standards for clinical photography.
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