After the registered success of electronic referrals by doctors, in cases where there is a suspicion of cancer in the breast, prostate, blood, lung, large intestine, head and the neck or in the Upper GI, which leads to the diagnosis of the patient being given as soon as possible, from this week the Department of Dermatology has also joined this scheme.
Thus, suspected cases of skin cancer are also being fast-tracked by a dedicated team that sees the notes of the doctor who has referred the patient and who starts the tests in an expeditious manner so that the diagnosis is given in the shortest possible time.
The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health Chris Fearne visited the Department of Dermatology at Mater Dei Hospital where, in addition to seeing the highest quality services provided in this department on a regular basis, he also saw how will the electronic referral of patients who will be fast-tracked in this Department work.
Representatives of the Department of Dermatology and of SAMOC explained how since the few days that they have started operating the electronic system, a number of patients have already been referred for further tests. The dermatologist and Head of the Department, Michael Boffa, explained how this system increases efficiency as it allows doctors to include photos of the lesion in their referral along with the necessary information to determine the urgency of the case.
While Danika Marmara, from SAMOC, reminded how this referral can be submitted both by primary care doctors and private doctors, she gave a list of the success of the scheme in the last four years, where more than one thousand three hundred referrals were submitted for fast-track, of which almost ninety cases resulted in cancer.
The Deputy Prime Minister pointed out how with the use of more technological systems, patients benefit from a more prompt and efficient service, which in the case of oncology translates into saved lives. He wished that this scheme continues to expand for all types of suspicious cases of cancer so that patients can start receiving treatment as soon as possible. He thanked both teams for their joint work.
