Assessing Dermatology Provider Perceptions and Attitudes About the Unique Needs of Older Adult Patients

clinic visits, 22.3% of respondents answered, “hearing differing advice from providers” and 16.2% of respondents answered, “confusion with billing and insurance”.

Further, providers identified poor psychosocial functioning (89.9%), polypharmacy (87.8%), lack of social support system (88.5%), poor adherence to medications (81.1%), and lack of a primary care physician (72.3%) as barriers to treatment in older adult dermatology patients (Figure 2).

This study identified a number of barriers to care and treatment among the older adult dermatology patient population. Creating partnerships between dermatologists and geriatricians is critical to address these barriers.³ For example, lectures provided by geriatricians in dermatology residency programs may improve education and raise awareness about geriatric topics such as polypharmacy, poor psychosocial functioning, and limited social support networks.

While the majority of practitioners identified telehealth due to the COVID-19 pandemic as a barrier to care in the older adult population, further studies are needed to assess the unique needs of older adult dermatology patients amid the COVID-19 pandemic. As many older adults continue to face challenges navigating teledermatology visits, we must develop strategies to optimize teledermatology in older adults. Limitations of this study include a small sample size and selection bias, as the survey was sent to a conference mailing list. This study provides valuable insight regarding provider concerns about the barriers to care and treatment in older adult dermatology patients.

The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

1. Linos E, Chren M-M, Covinsky K. Geriatric Dermatology-a framework for caring for older patients with skin disease. JAMA Dermatol. 2018;154(7):757-758.
2. Manjunath J, Silverberg JI. Association of sleep disturbances with geriatric age in atopic dermatitis patients. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2021.
3. Mundluru SN, Lee DR. Creating a partnership between dermatologists and geriatricians. JAMA Dermatol. 2019;155(1):125.

Adam J. Friedman MD ajfriedman@mfa.gwu.edu