News & Updates
‘Reaching multiple specialisms with one case is particularly convenient’
Caroline Nierkens is 36 years old and a practice holding GP in Hoog-Keppel. A place where digital innovations in healthcare were received with some scepticism until recently, but where the pandemic has accelerated developments. Now the practice in Hoog-Keppel is leading the way in the area when it comes to digitalisation in healthcare, with Prisma, among others.
Digital contact
‘It was in the summer of 2020 that I started with Prisma,’ says Caroline. ‘In the middle of the first corona-lockdown, so digital contact was highly desirable. I started posting all kinds of cases right away, because I was curious about the new consultation platform.’
‘I’m a doer,’ Caroline continues. ‘I want to do as much as possible myself and not refer if not necessary. I soon discovered that Prisma helps me get answers to a question in a practical way, which I would otherwise have had to read up on or call a specialist for.’
First case
‘My first case was about a patient who regularly called on the GP and was struggling with prostate cancer,’ says Caroline. ‘The question was about his entirely unique view of his treatment. The cancer he had was hormone-sensitive, but this gentleman was convinced he had a testosterone deficiency. He wanted to use supplements for that. Something that did not seem desirable to me. I decided to discuss the case on Prisma. Should I listen to this gentleman’s complaints and were his thoughts correct?’
‘In no time I had responses from three internists and thought: this is useful! The answers allowed me to give a clear story to my patient with good substantiation. In the end, I did still refer him for a number of complaints. But even with that, I was able to provide the specialist with some background information I had obtained through Prisma.’
New insights
‘Another case was that of a man with a wound on his nose,’ says Caroline. ‘It involved a large scar that did not heal nicely. And although I knew I could send the patient home with the message to wait a bit longer for the scar to mature, I still thought: let me present the case. Maybe there are new insights and I can do something now to speed up recovery.’
‘After posting the picture of the scar and the accompanying story, I received a response from both a dermatologist and a plastic surgeon. Both had a different suggestion, but in the end they agreed together on a recommendation that helped both me and my patient.’
One case: multiple specialisms
‘If I had phoned the plastic surgeon in this situation he would probably still have asked me to send a photo. That wouldn’t have been so efficient,’ says Caroline. ‘And besides, I would have missed the dermatologist’s argument. In case I had only spoken to the dermatologist, I wouldn’t have known what the plastic surgeon thought. The fact that in Prisma I can reach multiple specialisms with one case is particularly useful.’
‘In the end, the advice was still to be patient and wait and see. But that doesn’t matter. The patient was reassured and liked not having to go to hospital. He was well served by the answer, even though it didn’t give him immediate results.’
Knowledge library
‘I increasingly use the knowledge library, where all previously posted cases on Prisma are saved and accessible,’ says Caroline. ‘I also enjoy reading the Prisma Featured mail, which highlights a number of interesting cases every week. I then also share these with my colleagues. It’s a nice way to be kept informed in an interactive way, rather than just through the literature you receive in the mail.’
‘By making smart use of the Prisma knowledge library, you can give increasingly broader advice as a GP because you have access to knowledge you didn’t have before. In short: Prisma offers you a fun and convenient way to quickly find an answer to a case and get advice from multiple perspectives.’
Prisma is currently only available for GPs, specialists and RGPOs that are based in the Netherlands.