Assessment of dermatologists’ perception of utilizing teledermatology during COVID-19 pandemic in Saudi Arabia

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Figure 1
- Dermatologists perception of teledermatology. 5= strongly agree and 1= strongly disagree. TD: teledermatology.
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Figure 2
- Advantages of teledermatology.
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Figure 3
- Disadvantages of teledermatology.

Table 1

- Participant characteristics.

Variables	n (%)
Gender
Male	63 (58.9)
Female	44 (41.1)
Level
Consultant	45 (42.1)
Specialist	23 (21.5)
Resident	39 (36.4)
Region
Central	63 (58.9)
South	10 (9.3)
West	12 (11.2)
East	13 (12.1)
North	9 (8.4)
Workplace
Governmental	53 (49.5)
Private	23 (21.5)
Both	31 (29)
Teledermatology type
Phone call	43 (40.2)
Virtual clinic	35 (32.7)
Social media	21 (19.6)
None	8 (7.5)
Years practicing dermatology, Mean±SD	10.3±9.7

Table 2

- Outpatient versus inpatient teledermatology.

Variables	Outpatient	Inpatient	P-value
TD overall helps patient care	4.12±0.8	3.68±0.95	<0.05
TD helps overall patient care if dermatology is not available	4.29±0.73	4.17±0.72	0.051
TD increases access to dermatologic care	4.15±0.76	3.79±0.9	<0.05
TD increases medical liability	3.86±0.9	3.76±0.84	0.14
TD can be used to triage patients from	3.94±0.85	3.74±0.71	0.016
TD would benefit from a standardized triage algorithm or management approach to provide consistency of care	3.95±0.76	3.87±0.78	0.31

Table 3

- Outpatient and inpatient teledermatology by level.

Items	Mean			P-value
Items	Consultant	Specialist	Resident	P-value
Outpatient TD overall helps patient care	4.26	4.04	4	0.27
Inpatient TD overall helps patient care	3.73	3.69	3.61	0.85
TD helps overall outpatient care if dermatology is not available	4.51	4.09	4.29	0.28
TD helps overall inpatient care if dermatology is not available	4.37	4	4.05	0.048
TD increases access to outpatient dermatologic care	3.31	3.95	4.10	0.16
TD increases access to inpatient dermatologic care	3.97	3.82	3.56	0.11
Outpatient TD increases liability	4.06	3.52	3.84	0.05
Inpatient TD increases liability	4	3.34	3.74	0.009
Outpatient TD can be used to triage patients from outpatient to inpatient care	3.97	3.95	3.89	0.91
Inpatient TD can be used to triage patients from inpatient to outpatient care	3.75	3.87	3.66	0.56
Outpatient TD would benefit from a standardized triage algorithm or management approach to provide consistency of care	4.11	3.91	3.79	0.16
Inpatient TD would benefit from a standardized triage algorithm or management approach to provide consistency of care	3.88	3.82	3.87	0.93