This document discusses the benefits, barriers, and best practices of using social media in healthcare. It provides an overview of popular social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn and how they can be used for healthcare purposes. Some benefits include rapid response capabilities, networking and connection building. Barriers include privacy and confidentiality concerns. Best practices include using social media to collaborate, connect, educate and engage while maintaining ethical standards.

1. BENEFITS, BARRIERS AND BEST
PRACTICES OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN
HEALTHCARE
Pamela Katz Ressler, RN, MS, HN-BC
Stress Resources, LLC
University of Massachusetts, Boston
Tufts University
May 11, 2011

2. WOULD FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE BE
USING SOCIAL MEDIA TODAY?
 Overview of Social Media
 Benefits
 Barriers
 Best Practices and Tips

3. VICTORIAN INTERNET

4. THE INSTANTANEOUS HIGHWAY OF THOUGHT
The first North American telegraph line was established
between Baltimore and Washington, with the inaugural
message transmitted on May 24, 1844:
"What hath God wrought."

5. DEMOGRAPHICS: WHO IS ONLINE?
 79% of all U.S. adults are online and increasing rapidly
 83% of those online search for health/medical information
 Seniors (over 65) are among the fastest growing new user group
on the internet
 As of July 2010, 762 hospitals in the U.S. were using social media
tools (total of 1581 social media accounts)
 In Sept 2006 there were 10 hospitals nationwide using any form
of social media

6. TWITTER
 Micro-blogging platform
 200 Million Twitter accounts
 Started in March 2006
 Entries or “tweets” 140 characters in length
 Fast and easy to update
 Can easily be used on mobile devices
 Best used for rapid response or time sensitive information
 Searchable by topic or content

8. FACEBOOK
 500+ Million users and rapidly growing
 Launched in 2004, but only for college students
 In 2006, opened to anyone over 13 years old with an email address
 Personal networking site
 Growing use by professionals and organizations
 Can join groups with common interests
 You can have both a personal and professional presence on
Facebook by having a “page” as well as a “profile”

9. PROFESSIONAL FACEBOOK PAGE

10. PROFESSIONAL FACEBOOK PAGE

11. PROFESSIONAL FACEBOOK PAGE

12. LINKEDIN
 Largest online professional networking site with over 100 Million
users
 On LinkedIn you can:
 Share your CV or resume
 Manage professional relationships
 Join groups of similar interests
 Follow companies or organizations
 Share publications or slides
 Connect with former colleagues
 Network
 Expand your professional online presence

14. ANA IS ENGAGED IN SOCIAL MEDIA

15. BARRIERS
 Privacy
 Always use privacy controls on your personal social media
accounts
 Understand that anything you post on the internet stays on the
internet
 Use professional pages versus personal profiles for social media
– it is OK for you to direct patients, students or business
associates to your professional sites
 Patient Confidentiality
 HIPAA applies to social media
 Never post pictures of patients or body parts
 Avoid dates or time frames
 Never post identifying information
 Generalize

16. PAM’S POSTING RULE
 Before you post, always ask yourself….
“Would I want my mother
or my boss to read this?”
 Remember…what goes on the internet stays
on the internet

17. PROPOSED: ANA SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
 1. Patient privacy is a fundamental ethical and legal
obligation of nurses. Nurses must observe standards of patient
privacy and confidentiality at all times and in all
environments, including online. Nurses must not transmit or
place online individually identifiable patient information. The
nurse’s primary commitment is to the patient and nurses are
ethically required to practice with compassion and respect for
the inherent dignity and worth of every individual
.
 2. Nurses who interact with patients on social media must
observe ethically prescribed patient –nurse professional
boundaries. The precepts guiding nurses in these matters are
no different online than they are in person.
 3. Nurses should take advantage of privacy settings available
on many social networking sites in their personal online
activities, and seek to separate their personal and professional
sites and information online.

18. PROPOSED: ANA SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
 4. Use of privacy setting and separation of personal and
professional information online does not guarantee, however, that
information will not bleed through or be repeated in less protected
forums. Therefore, it is prudent for the nurse to evaluate all his or
her postings with the potential for patient, colleague, or employer
viewing in mind. Online content and behavior has the potential to
either enhance or undermine not only the individual nurse’s
career, but also the nursing profession.
 5. Nurses who view content posted by a colleague that is
unprofessional or that potentially violates ethical or legal
obligations should first bring the questionable content to the
attention of the individual, so that the individual can take
appropriate action. If the posting is egregious enough or if the
individual does not remove the posting, the nurse has the
obligation to report the matter to supervisors or other authorities.

19. COMMENT ON ANA PRINCIPLES OF SOCIAL
NETWORKING AND THE NURSE UNTIL JUNE 9, 2011

20. BEST PRACTICES: HOW TO EFFECTIVELY
USE SOCIAL MEDIA
 Collaborate
 Connect
 Network
 Contribute
 Organize
 Research
 Educate
 Listen
 Engage

21. WHAT ARE SOME HEALTHCARE USES FOR
TWITTER?
 Disaster alerting and response
 Drug safety alerts from the Food and Drug Administration
 Flu vaccine availability
 Diabetes management (blood glucose tracking)
 Rare diseases tracking and resource connection
 Broadcasting infant care tips to new parents
 Shift-bidding for nurses and other healthcare professionals

22. APRIL 27, 2011

23. WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
 No cell phone (cell towers are overloaded or down) – some
texting capabilities
 No landlines
 No electricity
 Less than ½ tank of gas
 Gas stations in the immediate area closed due to lack of
electricity for pumps
 Where to get gas to evacuate the area?

24. TWITTER RESPONSE WITHIN 10
MINUTES OF REQUEST

25. TWITTER @CDCEMERGENCY

26. TIPS TO GET STARTED USING SOCIAL
MEDIA
 LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com) Set up a LinkedIn basic
profile and search for colleagues who may already be
using LinkedIn. Search on LinkedIn for organizations
or groups of which you are already a member and
connect.
 Connect on ANA NurseSpace (www.ananursespace.org)
to discuss current hot topics in nursing or to start your
own discussion group.

27. TIPS TO GET STARTED USING SOCIAL
MEDIA
 Facebook (http://facebook.com) sign up for a personal account
and make sure to set privacy controls. Then sign up for a
“page” which is a professional persona. You will be the
administrator of your “page”. Note that it is necessary to have
a personal account to take part in Facebook Groups.
 Twitter (http://twitter.com) sign up for an account, choose a
screen name (@name) and follow some nursing content
providers such as:
 @nursingworld
 @AmJNurs
 @RNchat

28. SOME NURSING RELATED SITES TO FOLLOW
 Facebook
 ANA www.facebook.com/AmericanNursesAssociation
 ANA OJIN (Online Journal of Nursing Issues)
www.facebook.com/ANAOJIN
 Children’s Hospital Boston
www.facebook.com/ChildrensHospitalBoston
 Mayo Clinic www.facebook.com/MayoClinic
 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
www.facebook.com/RobertWoodJohnsonFoundation
 UMass Boston’s College of Nursing and Health Sciences
www.facebook.com/umassbostoncollegeofnursingandhealthsciences

29. SOME NURSING RELATED SITES TO FOLLOW
 Twitter
 CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
 Emergency Preparedness: @CDCemergency
 Health and Safety: @CDCgov
 Flu updates: @CDCflu
 Interdisciplinary Nursing Quality Research Institute
@INQRIProgram
 Mayo Clinic @mayoclinic
 Future of Nursing @FutureofNursing
 UMass Boston CNHS @umassbostoncnhs
 American Nurses Association @nursingworld

30. RESOURCES TO LEARN MORE ABOUT
SOCIAL MEDIA IN HEALTHCARE
 Ressler, P.K. & Glazer, G. (2010, 22 Oct) Legislative: Nursing’s
Engagement in Health Policy and Healthcare through Social Media.
Online Journal of Issues in Nursing (OJIN), Vol. 16, No.1.
 Fraser, R. (2011) The Nurse’s Social Media Advantage: How Making
Connections and Sharing Ideas Can Enhance Your Nursing Practice.
Sigma Theta Tau International, Indianapolis, IN
 http://social-media-university-global
 http://socialmedia.mayoclinic.org/
 http://www.pewinternet.org/topics/Health.aspx
 http://webcomm.tufts.edu/?pid=25&c=38

31. CONNECT WITH ME
 Pamela Katz Ressler, RN, MS, HN-BC
 Email: pressler@StressResources.com
 Website: www.StressResources.com
 Blog: www.PamRessler.blogspot.com
 Facebook: www.facebook.com/StressResources
 Twitter: @pamressler and @stressresources
 LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/pamelakatzressler
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/StressResources

32. THANK YOU
QUESTIONS?