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Healthy Dose?
Avery Faehling
May 11th 2016
University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
Table of Contents
Introduction
Its true, most of us have a heart, brain, lungs, blood, and air to breathe. It is a part of our being, and
something we rely on every single day. As time has gone on though, we have found ourselves relying on
something that is not within us. Rather we have begun to rely on social platforms where we can express who
we are, what we do, and some of our ideas or thoughts.
What is interesting, is the fact that health encompasses part of who we are, the habits by which we
live and diet by are what we do, and there are countless thoughts put forth on how to improve health and
which healthcare provider to use.
This paper explores many of the relationships formed by social media and the health field. Some of
these relationships include: HIPAA, the law, mobile technology, healthcare practices, along with
opportunities and threats for both patient and physician use. This is important because there is currently a
lack of information and implementation of social media that is tailored to the health field.
The first obstacle to make sure is eliminated when starting the talk on social media in healthcare, is to
make sure that it is something that is implemented by health organizations whether it be through a strategist,
physician, or team. According to the International Telecommunication Union in their Measuring The
When exploring social media laws, one of the most important industry laws to examine revolve
around the health industry. In the health industry, the code to work by is called HIPAA, also known as the
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. The purpose of HIPAA is to set certain guidelines to
protect an individuals rights over their health information and who can receive it. This is incredibly
important as an organization, because a persons health is who they are and as a health organization
credibility is more important to your strategy than social media is. The best health entities find a way to use
innovative social media strategies, while maintaining their credibly by adhering to HIPAA policies. To make
it clear, social media is certainly included by HIPAA and when it comes to communicating with or about
potentially his or her employer. (Lambert, 2012) Rather than jumping into what to specifically do to obey
HIPAA policies, it is more efficient to look at the laws themselves and examine what not to do. In many
cases, the first question to ask is what a breach is to a persons health information. A great area to begin
examining HIPAA guidelines is Section 13410(d) where HIPAA addresses civil and criminal penalties for
violations that are based on the nature of the violation, as well as resultant harm. Although the use of social
media isnt specifically referenced, these tools can certainly present risks under HIPAA and HITECH.
(Lambert, 2012) It is stated that a HIPAA violation becomes a breach, when a harm threshold has been
reached and, more specifically, when the HIPAA Privacy Rule Violation poses a significant risk of
financial, reputational, or other harm to the individual. (Rorer, N.D.) One the harm threshold has been
verified as a breach, the HITECH act details that notification must be sent to the individual affected no
later than 60 days after discovery of a breach. (Rorer, N.D.) This helps contain the damage possibly done to
patients, reevaluates ethical practices in the organization, and minimizes the chance that a breach happens in
the future. It is also important to note that while these guidelines do not specifically mention social media;
they still cover social media and create an understanding that a post should not include anything so specific
that would embarrass and harm a persons reputation. A better way of summing such a policy up is to live by
the guideline that if you wouldnt want it said about you in a public setting, then dont post it. The problem
becomes that there are many possibilities in the situation such as receiving permission from a patient to post,
or a physician not understanding that there are varying degrees of salience on certain diseases that they may
not take into account the fact that their idea of reputation harm may not be the same as their patients. When
entering the social media grey area, it is best to err on the side of not posting. As it can be seen in HIPAAs
guidelines, breaking the privacy rules of patients can levy heavy fines and potential criminal charges on the
unauthorized disclosure of individually identifiable health information by covered entities in oral, paper, or
electronic form. (Chretien, 2013) This surprisingly brings up an even greater question; how can a social
Beyond HIPAA
While HIPAA is significant in the medical field, especially in relation to social media, it is imperative
to examine policies beyond the act itself that may influence social behavior by medical professionals and
stated. With a deeper dive into the issue though, one can find that Facebook is the most popular form of
social media by health organizations along with their physicians. With this in mind, it is important to
understand Facebooks privacy policy, especially as it relates to the data and information that may have been
put on social media by healthcare professionals. To be exact, Facebooks policy on the use of data states,
we may access, preserve, and share your information in response to a legal request both within and outside
of U.S. jurisdiction. (Chretien, 2013) Facebooks policy only emphasizes more that healthcare professionals
should tread lightly on social media, especially in relation to patient cases. The policy that Facebook
currently has in place would allow all information on Facebook to be used against an organization or
physician in a legal movement regarding a HIPAA violation. Beyond just Facebooks clear policy, there are
constitutional rights than that can assist a healthcare organization or physician such as freedom of speech,
freedom from search and seizure, and the right to privacy. (Peck, 2014) While these rights may assist the
accused, they may also be challenged and have tended to cloudy the water between HIPAA and other rights.
Even with HIPAAs guidelines appearing strict at times, healthcare professionals can still communicate
properly with patients, even without being in the office or using social media. For example, communication
between the two parties can take place in a more private and direct setting using unencrypted email, which
are permissible, as long as other reasonable safeguards are followed. (Chretien, 2013) More specifically,
safeguards require covered entities to reasonably protect patients health information from unauthorized
disclosure by using physical, administrative, and technical safeguards. (Chretien, 2013) If these are followed,
then a healthcare professional is safe for the most part, therefore unencrypted emails would be a good choice
to follow. Healthcare professionals who assume they are safe should still assess they personal and
professional social media accounts, whether in school or at a job. This is because a Microsoft survey found
that 79% of employers view online information regarding prospective employees. This number will only
continue to increase, and with so many social accounts, a healthcare employer will be able to assess whether
Incidents
As clear of a warning many of these policies make, a study of medical blogs written by health care
physicians found that individual patients were described in 42% of the 271 samples studied. This means that
42% of the physicians studied could have been fined, suspended, and jeopardized their license. When
examining the significance of this study, it is important to understand that if this statistic held true throughout
every medical organization, almost half of an organizations medical professionals would be acting illegally
or unethically. It is fair to point out that of these samples, 17% were found to include enough information for
patients to identify themselves or their providers, and three included recognizable photographs of the
patients. (Chretien, 2013) This means that the level of severity varied in the 42%, but none the less risked the
chance of breaking HIPAA standards. Another study done on medical schools found that 60% of medical
school deans reported incidents in which students had posted inappropriate content online, including patient
information, inappropriate language, depictions of intoxication, and sexually explicit material. (Chauhan,
2012) This is an alarming statistic that proves a miscommunication between what HIPAA expects and what
physicians assume to be acceptable on social media. A more specific case that delves beyond the numbers
happened in Rhode Island, where an emergency medicine physician was reprimanded by the Rhode Island
State Board. He was caught in violation of unprofessional conduct and was fined after making comments
on Facebook about a patient. The physician did not mention the patients name in the post; however,
sufficient information was included that allowed others within the community to identify the patient.
(Chauhan, 2012) It is specific cases such as these that show the severity and realism that comes with HIPAA
and healthcare professionals. Problem being, medical professionals not only hurt their credibility through
ROT
When posting social media content, do not post on any platform if it cannot be spoken aloud in a
public setting.
If a HIPAA violation occurs, notify the legal staff and take employee back through training.
Promote local and national health initiatives by posting content that will inform a broader audience
and is not patient specific.
If a physician is posting, then they should not discuss a specific patients condition.
Implement and know how to handle social media crises into your hospitals crisis communication
plan.
Evaluate your healthcare social media policy after a set period of time to make certain that current
uses do not cross a legal line.
11
13
ROT
Follow the trail of negative information and take a proactive approach through verified accounts by
quoting and commenting.
The channels through which an initiative is attacked should be at the forefront of channels used to
combat negative information.
Know terrain of enemy and use it to create a form of uncertainty that encourages impartial users to
utilize your links and information
16
communicate with a doctor. (Pennic, 2015) This brings up a strong question of ethics, as mentioned in
previous chapters, where it is hard to define the proper form of communication that does not become too
invasive.
Wearable Technology
Mobile technology consists of more than just a phone that can be carried in a pocket. In fact, mobile
technology is only beginning to evolve into a new market, wearable technology. An example of wearable
technology is FitBit, which has over 19 million registered users as of October 2015. (Goode, 2015) This is
actually over half of the current wearable market, which had 34.5 million unit shipments in 2015. These
numbers, while large, still have a lot of room for improveme nt due to 79% of Americans willing to use a
wearable device to manage their health. (Pennic, 2015) Of that 79%, the reasons they would invest in a
wearable device would be to track physical activity (52%), symptoms (45%), manage a personal health issue
or condition (43%), track sleep patterns (41%), and track nutrition (39%). (Pennic, 2015) These wearable
technologies have as much potential as their technologies will take them, due to the large support they have
gained from consumers and mobile technology brands. Apple is a very good example of this support, as they
have adopted a health app that can track body measurements, fitness, nutrition, reproductive health, test
results, sleep, and vital signs. This strategy can be considered a double edged sword, which targets both
mobile technology and wearable technology. Apples HealthKit app, even allows the data from something
such as your blood pressure to be shared automatically with your doctor. It will be no surprise as such
wearable technology grows in the health field and monitors patients. An extreme possibility that has been
considered is internal technology that would be implanted within a patient by a physician, who could then
receive the most direct and accurate results for any health issues that are unique to the patient. As technology
evolves with health, the main concern that will always come up is a patients privacy. As it was mentioned in
17
conditions, and their data. Social media breaches and hacks may occur if social media along with mobile
technology are used to a thorough extent between patients and their physicians. Therefore, through this
research I recommend that patients and their physicians tread lightly, but adopt the opportunities that fit their
medical needs.
(Figure 1)
ROT
Mobile technology is an expectation therefore physicians along with brands need to interact in the
mobile terrain.
Health information is now outside of just an organization, so if mobile interaction is part of strategy,
then guidelines and crisis communication need to be set in place.
Mobile should be embraced by healthcare organizations to monitor and combat local health
outbreaks.
If an organization is looking to contain health crises or misinformation, then they should embrace
social media with mobility.
19
Patients under the same healthcare organization should be given a mobile social space to create peerto-peer support, bettering care.
If an organization wants to create top of mind awareness among patients, then they should be highly
present on mobile, proving quality care.
22
The Laugh Model, in figure 1, was created to use cost effective and powerful strategies such as social
media to create social change for the benefit of public health. In fact, the model was tested by attempting to
change a public health initiative without a budget, which was completed successfully. This model highlights
the largest benefit for healthcare organizations, which is improving public health through cost-effective
means. Much of the focus on the model to begin with is using the proper appeals, whether it be through
entertaining, humor, or emotional appeals. Rather than making the decision to focus on reach, the Laugh
Model encourages health organizations to focus on engagement where the bang for buck will be greatest.
Collaborating through social media, when done correctly, will be more effective and efficient. Much of the
effectiveness is based on a proper audience analysis that pairs well with the core messages and platforms that
will be used. This creates unique health initiatives that cut through the clutter that other health campaigns are
plagued with. A fantastic example of tailoring this strategy is a YouTube statistic, that states within the first
three clicks regarding health initiatives on YouTube, users choose a humorous or sexually explicit video
about the health initiative. Therefore, it is good strategy to adjust to the audience and create accurate health
campaigns that fit this description.
23
(figure 2)
At the core of every plan should be strategic decisions regarding the coordinates, content, channels,
connections, and corrections. This will vary highly depending on the organization, their audiences, and the
goals they have set in place. Something that is unique to healthcare is that policies should be at the forefront
of every social media plan due to the risk of legal miscues. The policies should cover the strategist, laws
24
organization. Beyond the social media original to the healthcare organization, a plan needs to be provided
regarding personal social media accounts that viewers may relate to an organizations brand. When creating a
policy, building blocks to an effective strategy can be found on www.socialmediagovernance.com/policies as
well.
Either way, one thing is clear with healthcare and social media; a plan needs to be set in place.
Something that many organizations have yet to do as it can be seen in figure 3. It can be seen that over half
of all organizations have a policy that addresses employees at the very least, a large accomplishment for an
organization. Only 54 percent is not a promising number though, considering the many pitfalls that can occur
with countless employees who have healthcare of thousands of individuals at their fingertips every day.
Therefore, a policy needs to be developed at the earliest possible time by a strategist and the organizations
leadership.
(Figure 3)
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Healthcare Physicians
The basis of all healthcare organizations are the physicians themselves, who interact with patients and
record their health information. With this type of impact in each position, the question that occurs is whether
social media has more pros or cons for professionals. To begin with it is important to hear what physicians
themselves have to say about their views on social media use in the medical field. A recent survey of more
than 4,00 physicians conducted by the social media site QuantiaMD found that 65% of physicians use social
media for professional purposes. (Ventola, 2013) To go along with physician input approximately 60% of
physicians were found to favor interacting with patients through social media for the purpose of providing
patient education and health monitoring, and for encouraging behavioral changes and drug adherence, with
the hope that these efforts will lead to better education, increased compliance, and better outcomes.
(Househ, 2013) While both studies point to great hopes for social media, there appears to be a disconnect in
genuine actions by physicians. This is because a survey of approximately 480 practicing and student
physicians, found that 68 percent felt it was ethically problematic to interact with patients on social networks
for either personal or professional reasons. (Dizon, 2012) This is interesting due to the fact that younger
physicians would be more adapted to social media, but clearly there is a concern that they may fall into
communication that is unethical.
Pros
As with all social media there are many opportunities to improve the field that an individual is in.
Part of effective practices in healthcare are communicating on a global scale with other physicians. The good
news is that this is a top use of social media in healthcare with Publicis Healthware International finding that
26
sharing and discussing. This helps garner the best practices from around the world into one healthcare
facility where a physician works. There is also the ability for rich communication such as video chat, which
was used to communicate with patients 7 percent of the time in 2011. (Cooper, 2011) This number has most
likely sharply rose considering the greater implementation of mobile technologies along with the popularity
in applications such as Skype and FaceTime. There is also the ability to utilize patient-targeted Googling,,
which is known in the medical field as using the wealth of information about a patient online that can be
used in a positive way to aid clinical care. (Farnan, 2013) This helps take a more unique approach to patients
and allows more tailored treatment options before a face-to-face appointment is created. An example of this
is anecdotal reports which examined using information found on social media to identify an amnesic
emergency patient or intervening when a patient is blogging about suicide. (Farnan, 2013) Those are huge
differences that are made just through the simple use of social media by an individual physician. It is
important to understand that a healthcare organization would not be in charge of such social tasks, instead it
would be at the discretion of the physicians themselves.
Cons
Since social media has been established and popularized, there have always been pitfalls to the
practice. In the carefully watched field of healthcare, physicians have a spotlight on themselves along with
their organizations brand with everything that they post. There also becomes an issue of separating personal
life from professional life when many patients, families, and friends may be looking to the physician for
health advice, even when they are off the clock. It was even proven in a recent study that patients often
extend online friend requests to their physicians on Facebook. (Farnan, 2013) There also becomes an issue
of the demands that patients demand of physicians themselves, such as a recent study stating that capabilities
patients want their doctor to have are 42 percent wanting an app to see their test results, 33 percent want
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Practicing Physicians
With social media becoming a part of younger lives, it is important to assess healthcare professionals
who are going to be coming into the field in the near future. Part of how physicians will use social media will
be dependent on what they are taught in their medical colleges before reaching the profession. At Auburn
University, instructors established Twitter handles so that pharmacy students could participate in class
discussions anonymously. By semesters end, 81% of students felt Twitter had let them express opinions
they wouldnt have shared otherwise. (Grindrod, 2014) To go along with this statistic, one-third of pharmacy
programs have reported using Twitter in some capacity and 38% of pharmacy faculty members use Facebook
for teaching, with half reporting that they plan to use social media in the future. (Grindrod, 2014) This is
promising when considering the need for healthcare providers to meet the social media demands of their
patients in the future as social media only becomes more popular. In fact, HealthCare Finance News found
that 49 percent of those polled expect to hear from their doctor when requesting an appointment or follow-up
discussion via social media within a few hours. This only adds to the strong stress that has been put on
physicians, between the long hours they work and the amount of patient issues that they are tasked with
solving. Sadly, this is a standard that physicians need to meet in some form, therefore it is important for
medical programs to continue utilizing social media in their discussions to improve the social quality that is
given in healthcare.
ROT
If a brand is looking to persuade patients to use their healthcare services, then they should implement
a strategic social media plan
If a brand implements a strategic social media plan, there needs to be guidelines in place.
If a brand wants to increase client care outside of the facility, they should create strong awareness and
make it clear they are a reliable source.
29
To tailor local care, healthcare brands should monitor social media of patients and community
members.
If a healthcare brand wants to be the go-to provider, then they need to implement social media trends
to enhance their refracted image.
Conclusion
Through this deep-dive analysis of social media in the healthcare field, many conclusions were
drawn. The first is that HIPAA and many other laws will help form the guidelines from which healthcare
brands and professionals should follow. It is clear that social media has benefits of improving health through
more interaction, information, accessibility, and strategic initiatives. Early adoption of social and mobile
trends is encouraged, but before they are fully implemented there needs to be a social media plan in place
that covers any new implementation. There are many abilities to misstep between physicians employed under
a brand, and even a strategist who may not be aware of specific guidelines. This makes a strategic plan
imperative to the success of a healthcare organization. A strategist with a well-thought out plan will be able
to subdue concerns of lions in the organization by proving there is a high return on influence that will give a
healthcare brand the greatest bang for buck.
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2. A survey of more than 4,00 physicians conducted by the social media site QuantiaMD found
that 65% of physicians use social media for professional purposes.
(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4103576/)
3. There are two categories of mobile health apps: 1) Wellness (85%), which are designed for
consumers and patients. 2) Medical (15%), which are used by physicians.
(http://research2guidance.com/2013/03/07/the-market- for- mhealth-app-services-will-reach-26billion-by-2017/)
4. The market for mobile health services are expected to reach $26 billion globally by 2017.
(http://research2guidance.com/2013/03/07/the-market- for- mhealth-app-services-will-reach-26billion-by-2017/)
5. There are more than 100,000 mobile health apps in app stores around the world, with more
than 4 million free downloads every day. (http://research2guidance.com/2013/03/07/the-marketfor-mhealth-app-services-will-reach-26-billion-by-2017/)
6. 91% of adults have their mobile device within arms reach the full 24 hours of a day.
(http://www.businessinsider.com/10-ways-mobile-is-transforming-health-care-2014-6)
7. If a breach has occurred, notification must be sent to the individual affected no later than 60
days after discovery of a breach.
(https://www.healthlawyers.org/Events/Programs/Materials/Documents/HHS13/Z_rorer.pdf)
8. A HIPPA use/disclosure violation becomes a breach, when a harm threshold has been
reached and, more specifically, when the HIPAA Privacy Rule Violation poses a significant
risk of financial, reputational, or other harm to the individual.
(https://www.healthlawyers.org/Events/Programs/Materials/Documents/HHS13/Z_rorer.pdf)
9. In July 2012, a Chicago Daily Herald article reported the following items: [A] physician, on his
blog, called a patient lazy and ignorant because she had made several visits to the emergency
room after failing to monitor her sugar levels. In yet another case, a medical student filmed a doctor
inserting a chest tube into a patient, whose face was clearly visible, and posted the footage on
YouTube. Being Facebook Friends and Doctors May Cross Line, Chi. Daily Herald (July 9, 2012)
published at 2012 WLNR 14380254.
10. Of more than 1,500 hospitals nationwide who have an online presence, Facebook is most
popular. (source: WHPRMS)
11. 40% of people polled said information found on social media affects how someone coped with a
chronic condition, their view of diet and exercise and their selection of a physician. (source:
HealthCare Finance News)
12. 49% of those polled expect to hear from their doctor when requesting an appointment or
follow-up discussion via social media within a few hours. (source: HealthCare Finance News)
36
13. The Mayo Clinics podcast listeners rose by 76,000 after the clinic started using social
media. (source: Infographics Archive)
14. 26% of all hospitals in the US participate in social media. (source: Demi & Cooper Advertising
and DC Interactive Group)
15. 41% of people said social media would affect their choice of a specific doctor, hospital, or
medical facility. (source: Demi & Cooper Advertising and DC Interactive Group)
16. 19% of smartphone owners have at least one health app on their phone. Exercise, diet, and
weight apps are the most popular types. (source: Demi & Cooper Advertising and DC Interactive
Group)
17. One-third of pharmacy programs have reported using Twitter in some capacity. (Pharmacy 2.0:
a scoping review of social media use in pharmacy.)
18. A 2011 survey also found that 38% of pharmacy faculty members use Facebook for teaching,
with half reporting that they plan to use social media in the future. (Pharmacy 2.0: a scoping
review of social media use in pharmacy.)
19. At Auburn University, instructors established Twitter handles so that pharmacy students could
participate in class discussions anonymously.1 By semesters end, 81% of students felt Twitter
had let them express opinions they wouldnt have shared otherwise. (Pharmacy 2.0: a scoping
review of social media use in pharmacy.)
20. It has been estimated that 70% of U.S. health care organizations use social media, with
Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube being the most popular. (The use of social media in healthcare:
organizational, clinical, and patient perspectives.)
21. 57% of consumers said that a hospitals social media presence would strongly influence their
choice regarding where to go for services. (Social media in nursing education: responsible
integration for meaningful use.)
22. A strong social media presence was also interpreted by 81% of consumers as being an
indication that a hospital offers cutting-edge technologies. (Social media in nursing education:
responsible integration for meaningful use.)
23. Mayo Clinic goes beyond typical social media and also provides a vast library of blog posts,
podcasts, conferences, and webinars to engage various community stakeholders. (The use of
social media in healthcare: organizational, clinical, and patient perspectives)
24. Several large pharmacies and insurers have piloted programs that provide prescription refill
and appointment reminders via social-media text messaging. (Online medical professionalism:
patient and public relationships: policy statement from the American College of Physicians and the
Federation of State Medical Boards.)
25. Approximately 60% of physicians were found to favor interacting with patients through social
media for the purpose of providing patient education and health monitoring, and for
encouraging behavioral changes and drug adherence, with the hope that these efforts will lead
to better education, increased compliance, and better outcomes. (The use of social media in
healthcare: organizational, clinical, and patient perspectives.)
26. In a survey of approximately 480 practicing and student physicians, 68% felt it was ethically
problematic to interact with patients on social networks for either personal or professional
reasons. (Practical guidance: the use of social media in oncology practice.)
74. According to the Measuring the Information Society Report 2014 by the International
Telecommunication Union [1], nearly 3,000 million people use the Internet, which is more than
40% of the world's population (7,200 million). (Measuring the Information Society Report 2014)
75. According to a study published by the Journal of Medical Internet Research [10], nearly 95%
of US hospitals are on Facebook, while only 50% have a Twitter account. (Use of social media
across US hospitals: descriptive analysis of adoption and utilization)
76. The study [27] shows that pro-anorexia videos are better rated and more highly favored than
videos with serious information about eating disorders. Anorexia activists use the same tags as
reliable health videos, and their websites sometimes rank higher in YouTube or Google. This
happens because of the way searching engine algorithms are designed, according to
researchers. (Misleading health-related information promoted through video-based social media:
anorexia on YouTube.)
77. "With ever increasing access to internet-based information, an unsubstantiated rumor about vaccines
can rapidly circle the globe and undermine immunization services, sparking outbreaks of disease and
untold deaths" stated WHO, UNICEF, and World Bank in 2010.
78. Some anti-vaccination websites, such as the National Vaccine Information Center [31], look
absolutely credible and can easily trick users into questioning vaccines safety. (National Vaccine
Information Center [Internet] Sterling (VA): National Vaccine Information Center; 2015.)
79. The study [32] analyzed 172 YouTube videos about the HPV vaccine. Most videos (news clips
or consumer generated content) were negative in tone, disapproving of the vaccine. Also,
84.
85. Apples health app can track the following: body measurements, fitness, nutrition, reproductive
health, test results, sleep, and vital signs. (http://www.apple.com/ios/health/)
86. With Apples HealthKit app, you can allow the data from something such as your blood
pressure to be shared automatically with your doctor. (http://www.apple.com/ios/health/)
87. Consumer health informatics in the past decade has moved from passive patient education to
activities that encourage patient participation and engagement in their health care through the
use of three key innovations: 1) wearable devices, 2) social media websites, and 3) personal
health records. (Self-Tracking, Social Media and Personal Health Records for Patient Empowered
Self-Care. Contribution of the IMIA Social Media Working Group.)
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88.
89.
http://library.ahima.org/xpedio/groups/public/documents/ahima/bok1_048693.hcsp?dDocName=bok1_0486
93
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90.
91. Qualitative analysis of posts and discussion forum topics on the 10 largest diabetes
management groups on Facebook revealed that patients, as well as family members and
friends, share personal clinical information, receive emotional support, and request diabetes
management guidance from other group members. (Greene JA, Choudhry NK, Kilabuk E, Shrank
WH. Online social networking by patients with diabetes: a qualitative evaluation of communication
with Facebook. J Gen Intern Med. 2011;26:287292.)
92. In a 2011 US survey of practicing physicians, 7% had used video chats to communicate with
patients. (Manhattan Research. Seven percent of US physicians use video chat to communicate with
patients. http://manhattanresearch.com/News-and-Events/Press-Releases/physician-patient-onlinevideo-conferencing Published May 16, 2011. Accessed June 23, 2012.)
93. In a US study, 37% had consulted physician rating sites when gathering information about a
specific provider.
(Keckley PH. Deloitte Center for Health Solutions. 2011. 2011 Survey of
Health Care Consumers in the United States: Key Findings, Strategic Implications.
http:/www.deloitte.com/assets/DcomUnitedStates/Local%20Assets/Documents/US_CHS_2011ConsumerSurveyinUS_062111.pdf
Accessed 6/23/12.)
94. When researchers analyzed the content of blogs written by health professionals, 11% contained
product endorsement. (Lagu T, Kaufman EJ, Asch DA, Armstrong K. Content of weblogs written
by health professionals. J Gen Intern Med. 2008;23:16421646.)
95. A study of 271 medical blogs written by health professionals found that individual patients
were described in 42% of blogs. Of these, 17% included sufficient information for patients to
identify their providers or themselves, and 3 included recognizable photographic patient
images. (Lagu T, Kaufman EJ, Asch DA, Armstrong K. Content of weblogs written by health
professionals. J Gen Intern Med. 2008;23:16421646.)
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96.
97.
98. 60% of doctors say that social media improves the quality of care delivered to patients.
(http://thesparkreport.com/infographic-social- mobile- healthcare/)
99. 60% of physicians say their most popular activity on social media is following what colleagues
are sharing and discussing. (Publicis Healthware International)
100.
Health care marketers use social media less often than other marketers (Facebook:
75/82, Twitter: 70/78, LinkedIn: 56/74)
101.
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