Towards a smart region: the case study of a teledermatology platform in Sardinian region (Italy)

Teledermatology offers the possibility of improving access to dermatologic care by using telecommunication technologies for connecting several medical centers and enabling to exchange information about skin conditions over a distance. This paper describes the main points of the implementation of a teledermatology project following the socalled smart region paradigm. A case study is presented to describe how the implementation of a virtual organization model using teledermatology is able to promote and facilitate the diagnosis on skin diseases and improve the quality of care for rural and remote areas. Initial results and assessment by general practitioners and dermatologists show that the proposed software platform can be used as a decision support system for dermatological patients.