Introduction
Social media is a prevalent phenomenon that is present in people’s everyday life. More than 40% of healthcare consumers utilize social media for their healthcare information needs (Surani et al., 2017). 26% of hospitals in the USA are currently participating in social media in some form (Surani et al., 2017).
The Benefits of Facebook Implementation in the Healthcare Domain
With Facebook integration in the medical field, healthcare workers may be more trained and prepared to interact with their patients. Healthcare providers may create groups and communities on Facebook to unite and motivate people to lead healthy lives. Social media may increase the profitable interaction between healthcare providers and their clients.
Adverse Effects of Facebook
Approximately only 31% of healthcare institutions adhere to social media policy, per the Institute of Health (Surani et al., 2017). The inappropriate use of Facebook by healthcare providers may burden the client with unnecessary information that could compromise the therapeutic environment (Baier, 2018). The platforms, such as Facebook, newspaper articles, interviews, YouTube videos, and blogs, allow the clients easy access to the therapist’s preferences, political beliefs, and extracurricular activities.
The Advantages of Using E-Mail and Text Messaging
Healthcare providers may exchange useful information and contribute to each other’s development. The usage of e-mail communication and texting may result in improved communication and shared-decision making between physicians and their clients. Sending health data via e-mail may facilitate and accelerate the transformation of access to the information.
The Violation of Professional Boundaries
Therapists should refrain from over-engaging with the patients via email communication or texting. A substantial amount of nurses and physicians contribute to medical online forums where they may share, discuss, and supervise available online disease processes. All healthcare providers should be aware of Ethics Codes and privacy rules.
The Advantages of Conscious Social Media Use
E-mail communication and text messaging may alleviate the process of sharing and exchanging health data with the therapist. Social media may increase the profitable interaction between healthcare providers and their clients. It may be a valuable tool in improving public health conditions within society.
References
Baier, A. L. (2018). The ethical implications of social media: Issues and recommendations for clinical practice. Ethics & Behavior, 29(5), 341-351. Web.
Hagg, E., Dahinten, V. S., & Currie, L. M. (2018). The emerging use of social media for health-related purposes in low and middle-income countries: A scoping review. International Journal of Medical Informatics, 115, 92–105. Web.
Surani, Z., Hirani, R., Elias, A., Quisenberry, L., Varon, J., Surani, S., & Surani, S. (2017). Social media usage among health care providers. BMC Research Notes, 10(1), 2–5. Web.
Zhou, L., Zhang, D., Yang, C. C., & Wang, Y. (2018). Harnessing social media for health information management. Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, 27, 139–151. Web.