The doctor will see you...soon?
Facts at your Fingertips
By Emily Margosian, assistant editor, July 1, 2019
As efforts to improve access to dermatologic care remain ongoing (Read Dermatology World’s 2017 feature “Access Granted” at staging.aad.org/dw/monthly/2017/october/access-granted for strategies to broaden patient access), how long can the average patient expect to wait to see a dermatologist? According to 2017 AAD Practice Profile Survey data, dermatology wait times vary according to practice setting and patient type. Multispecialty and academic groups have the highest wait times, with new, non-emergency patients waiting on average up to 60 days for an appointment. Dermatology groups and solo practices had lower wait times, with new, non-emergency patients waiting on average up to 30-40 days for an appointment.
Across all patient types, new, non-emergency patients experience the highest wait times, with more than 29% waiting more than four weeks for an appointment on average. Whereas established, non-cosmetic surgical patients have some of the best wait times, with 59% able to see their dermatologist in two weeks or less. For a more detailed breakdown of dermatology wait times according to patient type see the chart below.
