Your course of treatment has ended. You do not need to keep track of anything: you are always invited for a follow-up.
You are always invited
When that invitation arrives depends on your diagnosis. For some conditions it comes a few weeks after your treatment, for others only a few months later.
Your dermatologist decides this, as they know when there is something worth assessing. You receive the invitation by e-mail or as a message.
There is no need to wait
If you do not want to wait for that invitation, you can start a follow-up yourself. You can always do this. A follow-up does have to be paid for again.
When it is worth going earlier
Your complaint has improved but has not gone away, and you want to know whether you need to keep doing something.
Your complaint came back after you stopped. This is useful information for your dermatologist and often changes your treatment plan.
You had side effects. Even if you got through the course of treatment, it is worth reporting them.
You do not know whether you should continue. Some treatments are meant to stop, others need maintenance. If this was not in your treatment plan, ask about it.
If you do not want a follow-up
If your skin has cleared up and you have no questions, you do not need to do anything with the invitation. A follow-up is not compulsory. Read “I do not need a follow-up”.
What a follow-up involves
You send new photos and a short description of how things went. Your dermatologist compares these with your earlier consultations. Read “What happens during a follow-up?”
A follow-up has to be paid for again, because it is a new assessment. Read “Do I have to pay again for a follow-up?”
If you ran out of medication in the meantime
That is a different situation, and you do not always need a new consultation for it. Read “My medication has run out, how do I get a new prescription?”