Omer Salahuddin did his medical graduation from King Edward Medical College, Pakistan in 2005. After a year of internship, he joined Wah Medical College as teaching assistant. He completed his MRCS Glasgow degree in 2009 and completed his plastic surgery training after being qualified as plastic surgeon in 2013 from Pakistan. He completed his 2 years RCS Edinburgh sponsored fellowship in craniofacial Surgery from John Radcliffe Oxford in 2015. He also successfully completed his Fellowship from European Board of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in the same year. He is currently working as a Senior Clinical Fellow in Plastic Surgery at the Countess of Chester Hospital, UK.

Aims: Smartphones and selfies have become one of the daily life routines for the young and old. With the increased demands and curtailed public health resources, alternative means of the initial face to face patient management are sought. The patient self-acquired photograph is potentially an innovative approach to be considered in the initial assessment and triage of Plastic surgery trauma patients. Patients are asked to send unidentifiable selfies (wound) direct to the on-call team via a secure email address.It triages the urgency of referrals, reduces the number of hospital visits, less traumatic experienceto patients, reduces pain and costs associated with multiple dressing changes, particularly in children. Medical staff handover is greatly facilitated by the visual aid with no need for further dressings.

Methods: All trauma patients referred were included in this prospective study. A&E / GPs trauma referrals were provided with instructions on encouraging patients for taking good quality photographs of the sustained injuries. The selfies were forwarded to the on-call team to a secure NHS email address.

Results: Our results discuss the impact of this approach on the number of patient visits, the accuracy of the triage process, the cost reduction, the convenience to patients, compliance in submitting photographs and the ease of hand over amongst medical staff.

Conclusion: Medical selfie in the era of smartphone and digital technology can be a very useful costeffective aid in triaging and improving patient-related management. It is a useful tool for discussion and advice between the juniors and seniors.