Development and evaluation of an online training tool to aid in the diagnosis of chronic plaque psoriasis

Abstract

Background

Chronic plaque psoriasis (CPP) is underdiagnosed, undertreated and mistaken for other skin conditions such as eczema, tinea corporis and pityriasis rosea.

Objectives

To develop and evaluate an online training tool to improve the diagnostic skills of nondermatologists for CPP.

Methods

The study involved: (i) developing an online training tool to improve CPP diagnosis by nondermatologists; and (ii) evaluating the performance of the newly developed training tool by conducting a before-and-after exploratory investigation. Participants included three groups of primary care health professionals: general practitioners (GPs); nurses; and pharmacists. The tool contained written recommendations for the diagnosis of CPP in different skin colours and a medical artist's illustrations of psoriasis to overcome the lack of representative images of the disease in skin of colour and to illustrate the salient features more clearly than clinical photographs.

Results

In total, 60 participants completed the study (20 per participant group). The training tool improved participants' diagnostic skills for CPP. The diagnostic ability of GPs was, on average, higher than nurses and pharmacists before and after training. Participants found the training valuable and relevant to CPP diagnosis in primary care settings.

Conclusions

Our findings show that a training tool, using medical illustrations, for nondermatologists can be beneficial in terms of recognition of CPP. This may lead to more timely diagnosis and treatment of psoriasis and support relevant and faster referral to specialist dermatology clinics.