During these unprecedented and unpredictable times, protocols and best practices in healthcare have been dramatically impacted, and often delayed. The incidence of skin cancer is alarming and continues to rise significantly. The need for improved methods has never been higher.
Many Dermatologists perform cosmetic treatments for cash and have little time for low paying high-risk procedures. They often delegate the skin cancer screening to their nurse, P.A., or medical assistant. Something is very wrong with this picture. Why?
When it comes to your health, anything less than the care of a trained skin care expert is simply unacceptable! Cloud technology and smartphones are widely accepted by every single-payer healthcare system in the world. But in the USA, we inexplicably require “fee for services” that require approved CPT codes to require insurance to reimburse for a service. Without reimbursement for screening, the burden of early detection has unfairly been shifted to the individual who lacks the skills and techniques to succeed! SknVue is dedicated to help change this narrative and equation.
Let’s review some statistics. In 2016 one American died every 59 minutes from melanoma. The most recent data says two people die every hour! The incidence of melanoma was up 7.7% in 2019.
If your company had 200 employees, statistically, one employee has melanoma and two have BCC or SCC. Do you know which valuable employee it is that has a life-threatening problem? Are you certain that they are seeing a Dermatologist for routine screening?
Physician demand continues to grow faster than supply leading to a projected total physician shortfall of between 61,700 and 94,700 physicians by 2025.
Dermatologists are experts in short supply relative to the rest of the medical world. Today, there are an estimated 9,600 Dermatologists and 7,800 dermatology practices in the U.S according to IMS Health. – 34% of industry establishments are solo practices. – 48% of industry practices include three or more physicians.
The often 5-6 week delay to be seen by a Dermatologist for an initial evaluation is simply not acceptable.
Unlike many other countries, there is currently no insurance reimbursement for skin cancer screening. This antiquated practice is hard to believe, but it’s true. There are only reimbursements for biopsy and Mohs surgery. This is unacceptable and must be changed.
Skin biopsy is an established method for diagnosis Dermatologists routinely use during consultations. However, not all skin biopsies produce a conclusive diagnosis nor does the Dermatologists routinely perform this procedure for every patient they consult.
Primary care physicians use surgical biopsies to diagnose. This often results in the overuse of biopsies. It also creates ballooning, unnecessary costs to an already overburdened healthcare system.
The risk of missing a melanoma can encourage overuse and abuse of surgical biopsies. In fact, Dermatologists are 30% less likely to biopsy vs. primary care physicians.
If you are under the care of a Dermatologists, keep it up! If not, you need to set up an appointment today. Delaying could cost you your life.
