Background
Patients with poorly controlled eczema commonly experience itch, sleep disturbance, bleeding, weeping, cracking, flaking and roughness of the skin. However, with appropriate treatment, these symptoms can improve.
The Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM) is a questionnaire that allows patients to record the frequency of these seven symptoms over the past week. Patients with more severe eczema will have higher POEM scores. As their eczema improves, their POEM scores will fall correspondingly.
At each Eczema clinic visit, patients may complete the POEM questionnaire. Regular calculation of POEM scores allows for monitoring of eczema severity and the effectiveness of treatments prescribed at the Eczema clinic.
Clinical Indicator:
Percentage of patients with an improvement (of at least 25%) in POEM score
Result
In 2023, 46% of moderate to severe eczema patients who attended the Eczema clinic, showed an improvement in their POEM score.