Inpatient dermatology consultations in a tertiary care hospital in Spain: A retrospective study of 750 patients

OBJECTIVEMedical consultations are a healthcare task that is generally undervalued and understudied. The main objective of this study was to describe and analyse the consultations requested of dermatology departments and the aspects that are involve in resolving the consultations. PATIENTS AND METHODSWe conducted an observational retrospective study that collected the consultations for patients hospitalised over a period of 36 months. We analysed variables related to the management of patients and the quality of the care. RESULTSThe study included 750 patients with a mean age of 64.85 (±20.23) years. The medical departments requested the most consultations, mainly internal medicine departments (37.9%). The most common topic for the consultations was inflammatory dermatoses (36.2%). The most common individual diagnosis was drug rash (8.1%). CONCLUSIONSConsultation activities have a significant impact on the management of hospitalised patients, resulting in improved quality of care and reduced healthcare costs. These activities are also of training value for resident physicians.