Clinical images in a dermatology practice

Skin practice is visual. A lesion described in words on one visit and re-described on the next is hard to compare; two photos side by side are not. Yet in many clinics the photos live on a personal phone, disconnected from the record they belong to.

Attach the image to the visit, not a folder

The useful place for a clinical photo is against the patient and the specific visit or procedure it relates to. Then a review six months later shows the image in the context of what was found and what was done.

Structure the finding, not just the picture

A photo plus a lesion or body map — recording site, size and type — means the record can be read quickly and the change over time is explicit, rather than relying on the clinician to remember where last time's lesion was.

Before and after belong to the same course

For a course of treatment — peels, cautery, a procedure series — the images from each sitting sit on one timeline, so the progression is one view and the record supports the outcome the patient sees.

Consent and access

Clinical images are sensitive. They should be captured with the same consent as the procedure, and visible only to the clinic's authorised staff.