PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - O M Dolan AU - E A Bingham AU - J F Glasgow AU - D Burrows AU - J R Corbett TI - An audit of dermatology in a paediatric accident and emergency department. AID - 10.1136/emj.11.3.158 DP - 1994 Sep 01 TA - Journal of Accident & Emergency Medicine PG - 158--161 VI - 11 IP - 3 4099 - http://emj.bmj.com/content/11/3/158.short 4100 - http://emj.bmj.com/content/11/3/158.full SO - Arch Emerg Med1994 Sep 01; 11 AB - Two studies were undertaken of patients with dermatological disorders who attended the Accident and Emergency (A&E) Department of the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children during 1990-1991. The aims were to review diagnostic accuracy and assess the benefits of an open-access consultant dermatology clinic. A retrospective survey of 14,340 new attendances at the A&E department over a 7-month period found that 540 of these (4%) had a primary dermatological disorder. In 26% no diagnosis had been made although only 10% were referred for a specialist opinion. A 2-month prospective study of patients who attended the department and were referred to a consultant dermatology open-access clinic revealed overall diagnostic accuracy of 66% (+/- 2 SEM). Individual rates of diagnostic concordance between junior doctor and consultant were 59% for skin infections and 77% for papulosquamous disorders. The open-access clinic allowed prompt referral for correct diagnosis and initiation of appropriate management.