P053 Enhancing regional dermatological care: evaluating the impact of a regional community outreach programme on referral patterns and clinician confidence

Abstract Dermatology referrals from primary to secondary care have been increasing annually. To address this trend, our dermatology department launched a community outreach programme aimed at supporting primary care clinicians. The programme’s primary aim was to enhance primary care clinicians’ confidence and competence in managing common dermatological conditions, with the secondary goal of reducing referrals to secondary care. Initially piloted and then launched in July 2023, the programme targeted individual primary care networks with thrice-yearly educational sessions focusing on common dermatoses selected from top nonlesion queries received via the Advice and Guidance (A&G) service. Feedback was collected after each session to assess the programme’s effectiveness, to gauge participant response and to measure improvements in clinicians’ confidence and competence. Referral data from August 2022 to July 2023 (before the programme) and August 2023 to July 2024 (after or during the programme) were compared. Metrics included total referrals, two-week-wait (2WW) referrals, routine referrals, urgent referrals and A&G requests. Overall, referrals increased by 4%, below the predicted national annual rise of 8–10% (Getting It Right First Time data). Including A&G requests, total patient encounters rose by 7%, aligning with national trends. Routine referrals decreased by 9.5%, indicating improved management of common dermatoses in primary care. Urgent referrals remained stable, while 2WW referrals increased by 11%, exceeding the national average, likely reflecting the programme’s lack of lesion recognition training. A&G requests rose by 15%, which is consistent with expected transient increases during the anticipated learning curve. The programme received overwhelmingly positive feedback, with a mean score of 4.7/5 across key domains, including content relevance, confidence in applying material, clarity of objectives, interactivity, organization, and presenter knowledge and enthusiasm. A recurring theme in qualitative feedback was the need for more focus on lesions and skin cancer, highlighting an area for improvement. The community outreach programme positively impacted routine dermatology referrals, meeting its goal of enhancing clinicians’ ability to manage common conditions. The rise in 2WW referrals underscores the need for lesion recognition training to address gaps in diagnostic confidence. Overall, the programme demonstrates potential to reduce secondary care demand while improving dermatological care in primary settings. Expanding the curriculum to include lesion recognition could further optimize referral patterns. Continued feedback collection and iterative session design will ensure sustained improvements in clinician competence and confidence.