Map of dermatology: 'first-impression' user feedback and agenda for further development.
BACKGROUND
Map of Dermatology (http://healthcybermap.org/dermap/) is a free web resource that enables users to search for images of skin conditions by body region and morphology rather than by condition name, which is much more useful and natural in answering questions about unknown clinical presentations/diagnoses, especially for non-specialists.


OBJECTIVE
This paper presents responses received from twelve users, including specialist dermatologists, non-specialists (some with interests in health informatics), and lay persons, who provided their 'first-impression' feedback on Map of Dermatology by responding to a very short e-mail questionnaire covering service usefulness and interface usability. The paper also provides a brief review of the gaps in current online dermatology information service provision in general.


RESULTS
The overall user feedback received was very positive. An exploratory discussion of the arguments and possibilities for radically improving Map of Dermatology to produce 'the ultimate web-based dermatology diagnostic tool' is also provided, together with some desiderata and preliminary 'design and feature specifications' for such a tool based on users' suggestions, the gaps highlighted in other existing online dermatology tools, and the author's own reflections and experience.


CONCLUSIONS
When successfully developed, the proposed tool is expected to have significant potential for efficiently and effectively addressing many of the currently unmet educational needs of clinicians.
Kamel Boulos
Maged N
MN
Faculty of Health and Social Work, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK. mnkamelboulos@plymouth.ac.uk
D001271:Atlases as Topic; D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction; D003880:Dermatology / Q000193:education*; D005246:Feedback; D006801:Humans; D016247:Information Storage and Retrieval / Q000379:methods*; D020407:Internet; D046609:Libraries, Digital; D008488:Medical Illustration; D012871:Skin Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires