MySkinSelfie and the SkinSelfiePortal
The main aim of the MySkinSelfie project is to encourage and support people to look after their skin. Self monitoring is an excellent way to:-
- Track any changes in skin lesions
- Monitor response to treatment
- Communicate with your doctor or therapist by sharing access to your image folders
- Investigate the relationship of skin problems to environmental triggers by keeping an accurate diary of flare ups.
MySkinSelfie is a mobile phone application that allows you to keep photo diaries of your skin. Once you create an account, you can create folders for different areas of your body and start capturing images. All images are very secure. They are encrypted whilst stored on your phone and encrypted again when sent to the cloud. Our cloud storage partner is Microsoft Azure ( UK based servers) which is an NHS Digital approved cloud provider.
The custom built camera software inside the app helps you to take consistent images. By showing an overlay image of the previous photo you can take consistent images of the same skin lesion. The app allows you to compare images side by side to see if there have been any changes over time. This allows you to more accurately identify any changes when comparing photos. You can then leave a comment with more details about the image.
At Newcastle Dermatology, UK, we are pioneering the use of patient-led tele-Dermatology. We are using the folder sharing function to encourage patients to share images of skin problems to decrease face to face clinic visits. When you share access to a folder you enter the clinic code for the clinic you want to share with. You then decide how long you wish to give access for and what you are allowing the images to be used for eg medical records only, teaching, research etc. The clinic you have shared with will receive a link to the SkinSelfiePortal allowing them to view your images. From the portal they can make comments which will appear in your folder. Only Organisations with a subscription to MySkinSelfie can access the SkinSelfiePortal to view shared images.
There are likely to be many other uses for MySkinSelfie and the SkinSelfiePortal. We will provide details of our research on this website.