Telemedicine and Teledermatology Links

• The Africa Teledermatology Project
• American Telemedicine Association (ATA)
• Teledermatology Special Interest Group of the ATA

About Us

The Telemedicine Task Force identifies and evaluates the impact of emerging medical, technical, legal and financial issues in telemedicine as they affect the practice of dermatology.

A shortage and/or mal-distribution of dermatologists in the United States created by the aging population combined with the increased prevalence of skin cancer among other factors has resulted in the need to examine ways to reach patients beyond the traditional face-to-face office visit. Teledermatology plays a pivotal role in the solution to extend these much-needed dermatologic services.

Teledermatology has been gaining momentum over the years and is an important component of daily practice for many dermatologists. Educators, as well as, practicing dermatologists have studied the diagnostic accuracy, reliability, clinical outcomes, patient and clinician satisfaction, and the economic cost benefit of telemedicine. Their studies have compared store-and-forward and real-time teledermatology to face-to-face in clinic consultations, and documented a high rate of concordance of teledermatology compared with face-to-face consultations.

Activities

Telemedicine in Developing Countries
With dermatological services, not to mention general medical services, severely lacking in underdeveloped nations in Africa, AAD members are looking to cutting-edge technology and a pair of teledermatology programs funded by telemedicine grants administered by the Education and Volunteers Abroad Committee (EVAC) in hopes of easing this medical service shortage.

The Academy has initiated a database of members who would like to participate in international teledermatology outreach projects and volunteer their time remotely to answer consultations.  For more information on this opportunity, visit http://www.aad.org/members/leadership/inter_opportunities.html.

Education
Educational opportunities for Academy Annual and Summer Meeting attendees are regularly directed by Task Force members each year.

The Telemedicine Technical Assistance Documents provide an excellent primer to dermatologists considering bringing teledermatology into their institution or practice.  Chapters 1 and 2 of the document deal with general considerations of telemedicine.  Chapter 4 is an entire chapter dedicated to the practice of teledermatology.  This document is available in PDF format at no charge here.

The American Telemedicine Association (ATA) and the ATA Teledermatology Special Interest Group both provide a great deal of information on their websites for dermatologists interested in telemedicine.

 

Practice Guidelines Development
Task Force members have been instrumental in developing practice guidelines for teledermatology. The American Telemedicine Association's Practice Guideline for Teledermatology was released in late 2007 with input and support from the Academy and Task Force members. To view the Practice Guideline, visit http://www.americantelemed.org/ICOT/Standards/Telederm_guidelines_v10final.pdf

Reimbursement
The Task Force frequently provides comment to government agencies and insurers advocating for adequate reimbursement for the practice of teledermatology. Click here to access a model letter of intent to send to insurance and managed care companies, developed by the Task Force.

Information on Medicare reimbursement policy is outlined by the ATA here. (Last updated January 22, 2007).  The Center for Telehealth & E-Health Law has a website for physicians with information on Medicare reimbursement, including a Medicare reimbursement checklist for telehealth professional fees here.

Medicaid reimbursement policy for telemedicine varies from state to state.  A fairly up-to-date site with specific state by state information can be found at the Center for Telehealth & E-Health Law here.  An older, but very useful report called The Telemedicine Reimbursement Report by the Center for Telemedicine Law, summarizes state policy for the 27 states as of 2003 that have some level of Medicaid reimburse for telemedicine.  The report also outlines the positions of states that do not reimburse for telemedicine as of the time of the report.  This document is available in PDF format here.

Supporting Residency Programs in Teledermatology
In keeping with its dedication to international educational opportunities, the Academy will be providing funding for six U.S. or Canadian senior dermatology residents to participate in a four week elective in a developing nation where the Education and Volunteers Abroad Committee is establishing dermatology support programs and teledermatology consulting services in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, and Malawi. For more information on this opportunity and to apply online, visit http://www.aad.org/members/international/scholarships.html