In reply: We are grateful for the interest in our article on medical photography. We plan to publish a more comprehensive article on our research results shortly, to provide a better understanding of the issue in one Australian tertiary hospital.
Medical photographs aid diagnosis by becoming part of the patient file, providing a highly useful visual record for case management. Among 167 clinicians surveyed in our research, 70 out of 80 took photographs for the patients’ medical record.1 The eight main reasons for photography were documenting cases, tracking transient symptoms, tracking wounds, education, publication, telehealth, personal record, and at the patient’s request.2
Image use in wound surveillance is multifaceted. In addition to aiding diagnosis, a photograph can reduce unnecessary, expensive dressing changes and associated physical and psychological discomfort.3 We also suspect progress images can be used to counsel patients undergoing long-term wound healing, improving treatment compliance and resulting in better health outcomes.
We believe that soon the use of picture-taking handheld devices to aid diagnosis and management will become a norm. This is why a warning and discussion about the pitfalls of consent and incorrect or unethical image capture, use, storage and retention is timely, relevant and critical.
No relevant disclosures.