Federal Member for Capricornia Michelle Landry has joined with Dermatology Solutions in Rockhampton to highlight the trial of a state-of-the-art machine that will help ease the waiting list to see a dermatology specialist.
Michelle Landry said “As we head into another warm summer in a few months it’s worth remembering that Rockhampton has one of the highest rates of melanoma in the world. As a community we must take the time to get ourselves checked.”
The machine is called the Vectra WB360 and there are less than 30 in the world. This is the first in the world to be used for telehealth consultations.
John Evans of Dermatology Solutions said “Currently the wait time to see a Dermatology specialist is around 10 months so Rockhampton is the perfect test site for this machine.
This machine supports GP’s with remote diagnosis through Tele-Health and finds melanomas hopefully at an early stage before they spread.”
Because of the 10 months wait, patients with complex distressing rashes currently have to fly to Brisbane for specialist care or remain undiagnosed.
Ms Landry said “Early diagnosis is critical to survival from skin cancer and reduces health costs. Obviously, these days we are far more aware of how serious a problem skin cancer is especially in Queensland, but we clearly need to be more vigilant.”
The long-term plan is to roll out this service across Rural Australia and provide early diagnosis for melanoma to people who live in remote and regional parts of Australia.
