Recently, I had the pleasure of being surrounded by brilliant health care thought leaders. First, I delivered a social media presentation at the Eyeforpharma conference. Secondly, I sat in the audience at the Social Communications and Health Care 2011 conference to listen to others present on social media, and participate in a round-table discussion on social media.
It’s clear from the personal discussion that followed with folks from the pharma industry, medical device companies, and hospitals, that they understand the need for social media (or social networking), but they are cautious to dive in.
A few concerns I’ve heard: “social media can be paralyzing,” “senior leadership in the pharma industry is looking for the FDA to make decisions because it’s such a highly regulated industry,” and “it’s still so new, what’s the ROI?” Concerns are real; however there will always be concerns and questions. Sometimes, the best approach is to just dive right in.
The brilliant reason to dive deep into the social media health space is Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Health in 30*
Ed Bennett has been managed a huge and comprehensive list of U.S. hospitals using social media. In the newest update, Hospital accounts on LinkedIn are now also tracked in addition to Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and blogs.
Current stats:
871 hospitals total
421 YouTube channels
679 Facebook pages
648 Twitter accounts
417 LinkedIn accounts
94 blogs
You can also browse by state. The number of hospitals using each account is below:
*This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll*
A recent piece in the LA Times created quite a kerfuffle in the social health infosphere. The article When Facebook goes to the hospital, patients may sufferdetailed some of the issues facing hospitals that have chosen to flirt with Facebook. Stories of nurses posting images of dead patients. Lawsuits and employee rights. An interesting read. It offered up a serving of fresh red meat for those health professionals looking to keep their heads squarely in the sand.
A few thoughts:
Blocking Facebook won’t stop stupidity. Read Paul Levy’s most recent post on the issue. He reminds us that administrative legislation will not stop ignorance. It’s the messenger, not the medium. As healthcare administration’s most vocal advocate for social adoption, I’d recommend you check out Paul Levy. His point of view is remarkable.
Good employees may not understand privacy. We need to go to the next step and address the fact that many hospitals have employees who don’t understand the privacy laws. We still have a responsibility to protect patients from the misinformed. While it’s suggested that you “can’t stop the conversation,” it’s important that hospitals take responsibility and educate their employees regarding what’s appropriate and what isn’t. Many health professionals I know innocently believe that by simply excluding an individuals name you’ve protected their privacy. We have work to do. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at 33 Charts*
Hospitals are using twitter and billboards to broadcast emergency department waiting room times. This is not without risk, as billboards may not clarify the triage process, where seriously-ill patients will be seen right away.
Recent articles from NEJM and JAMA articles on medical students and social media.
A lot of the developments in openness in peer review and the world of grant funding are chronicled at Nature’s Peer-to-Peer blog. Bora Zivkovic has been and active an articulate defender of open publications as well.
Ed Bennett is the Director of Web Strategy at the University of Maryland Medical System and the real expert of how hospitals use social media. He has just published his recent slideshow focusing on this issue.
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