title: Assessing diagnostic skill in dermatology: a comparison between general practitioners and dermatologists.
abstract: This retrospective study was conducted to assess and compare the diagnostic accuracy between referring general practitioners and dermatologists with regard to skin conditions. Six hundred and fifty-six consecutive general practitioner referrals to a private dermatology practice and a dermatology outpatient department were assessed. The concordance rate in diagnoses from a wide spectrum of dermatological diseases was compared between general practitioners and dermatologists. Referring general practitioners agreed with dermatologists' clinical diagnosis and histology (when available) in 42% of cases. The concordance between general practitioners and dermatologists in the setting of non-biopsied cases is 45%. One hundred and fifty-one of 656 (23%) conditions had histological confirmation. Overall, general practitioners agreed with the histological diagnosis in 24% of cases and dermatologists agreed with the histological diagnosis in 77% of cases.
authors.affiliation: St George Dermatology and Skin Cancer Centre and St George Hospital, Kogarah, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: Hue
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tran
authors.forename: Keng
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Adrian C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jabbour
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shumack
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003880:Dermatology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005194:Family Practice / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D009517:New South Wales; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*