Social media websites are the most used online platforms in the world today. Nurses use these platforms for a number of reasons that include entertainment, research and getting news and updates. Since a huge percentage of population has access to online platforms, it is essential for nurses to be very particular and careful on the content that they share on social media because they have an influence on the viewers (Steers & Gallups, 2020). When posting on social media, nurses should ensure that they give the right information in the cases whenever they are educating the society on such issues as healthy living, or when giving helpful guidelines to their patients.
Moreover, what nurses post on social media has a high tendency of being practiced by the people because they trust the professionals. As a nurse, it is important to set aside prejudices and bias opinions when communicating and commenting on peoples’ post (Alshakhs & Alanzi, 2018). This is because such conducts diminish the caregiver’s respect and trust among the communities they intend to serve, thus, reducing the promotion of patient-centred health care. Thus, nurses on social media should desist or restrain from portraying any signs or instances of discrimination against an individual or a particular group of people.
Apart from discrimination, racism and nepotism are other unethical behaviors that could depict a depraved image for the nursing profession. An individual with such manners is assumed to be self-centered, and only concerned about their selfish gains. Thus, this hinders effective care delivery, because according to rules and guideless, nurses are obligated to attend to everyone equally irrespective of their differences (Steers & Gallups, 2020). Nurses are also supposed to maintain the privacy and confidentiality of a patient’s information. Exposing the patients on the social media without their permission is against the ethics law. It is the responsibility of the nurse to maintain the trust the patient has in them by reporting any breach of confidential information of the patient.
In conclusion, nurses should familiarize themselves with the essential ways of gaining the patients’ trust and the confidentiality rules on the ethics law in order to ensure a patient-centred care. The nurses should be influencers on promoting healthy living habits and good sanitation procedures. Social media should be a tool that is used for the good of the people and for their entertainment.
References
Alshakhs, F., & Alanzi, T. (2018). The evolving role of social media in health-care delivery: measuring the perception of health-care professionals in Eastern Saudi Arabia.Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare, 11, 473-479.
Steers, M., & Gallups, S. (2020). Ethical tipping point: Nurses’ presence on social media.Nursing, 50(12), 52-54.