Final Project HCA 417 Social Media

Social Media and Healthcare

By: Charles Cho, Roger Tovar, Amanda Romano, Kwan, Ashley Cho, Rachel Romansik

Social Media has Changed the World

Social media today has changed the way the world learns about diseases, disabilities, and mental disorders.

There is a large increase of individuals who use online websites and other social media to search for health information.

Social media has had both positive and negative effects on the awareness of these illnesses.

Social Media and Awareness

Social media can be used to create an online community that drives the awareness of various illnesses in creative ways for different purposes.

Different medias that help promote health awareness include:• Health Magazines & Websites

• Blogs

• Television

• Social Networking

The spreading of information is a “key mechanism of creating awareness, a crucial factor in the early detection and prevention of diseases” (Lapointe, 2014).

Social Media and Awareness

Misconceptions about various health issues can lead to stigma and discrimination, as well as the continued spread of misinformation.

Social media can help change public prejudices, improve public education, and make people more empathetic to those who suffer from diseases (Stuart, 2006).

The Benefits of Using Social Media in Healthcare

1. Increased Interaction○ Social media can provide the general public with medical

advice without compromising patient confidentiality.2. Accurate Information

○ Proper education on how to search for health conditions can go a long way. Directing users to accurate sites can help them find more benefitting information.

3. Wide Accessibility○ Expanding one’s professional medical network and

participating in direct two-way communication increases knowledge

The Benefits of Using Social Media in Healthcare 4. Emotional Support

Peer and Social emotional support can lead to more positive health outcomes. Open conversations about various medical problems can reduce discrimination.

5. Public Health SurveillanceSocial media can provide additional information to traditional data

sources through the promotion of healthy lifestyles and preventative care. It can also be used to measure reactions to public health campaigns.

6. Health Policy InfluenceThe transparency of social media can improve the quality of care

provided to the general public as an open source of information (Marouchos, 2014).

The Benefits of Using Social Media in Healthcare 7. Faster access to information and improved communication between the patient and health care provider

In some situations, it is important that patients are able to get answers as quickly as possible.

8. Patients are able to build a connection with their doctors

When patients are able to connect with their doctors, patients are more comfortable to relay their problems and doctors will be able to better understand their patient’s issues as well as find a solution

Statistics

19% of smartphone owners have at least one health app (diet, exercise, and weight maintenance apps) on their phones

26% of all U.S. hospitals use some form of social media for outreach

After using social media for outreach, the Mayo Clinic saw a 76,000 person increase in the amount of listeners for their podcasts

60% of social media users say that they trust what their doctors post on social media outlets

Misinformation in Media

With the largely growing amount of people using the internet to learn about different health concerns, there exists a growing amount of danger and misinformation about these statements

Some dangers of misinformation include:

Lack of quality information

Activists

Loss of trust in health care professionals

Health agencies struggle to respond quickly

Dangers of Misinformation Lack of quality information

Authors are usually unknown on health sites

There is a lot of unreferenced and informal material (Ventola, 2014)

Anyone can upload information to a site

Loss of trust in health care professionals

Inaccurate information can be viewed as “reality”

It can cause a negative image of the professionals due to unprofessional content that is posted

Health agencies struggle to respond

Health agencies struggle to respond to misinformation quickly when public health rumours arise

Social media causes “storms” to be created which can causes societies responses to be inappropriate (Dosemagen & Aase, 2016)

Dangers of Misinformation - Continued Activists

Anti-vaccination lobby

Can manipulate information and spread rumours about vaccine safety

Disease outbreaks can be caused

Popular among social networks

Some websites can look very credible

Pro-anorexia communities

Use social networks to defend their ‘lifestyles’

One study shows that “pro-anorexia videos are better rated and more highly favoured than videos with serious information about eating disorders” (Fernandez-Luque & Bau, 2015)

Social Media for Healthcare Marketing

Gives your Organization a voice

Can interact and engage with your patients or customers.

Educate your Audience

ALS ice bucket challenge

Advertise

Create brand awareness for your organization.

Give your Audience Content they can't get elsewhere.

( King, 2015)

Social Media for Healthcare Marketing

Pharmaceutical marketing

1. There is a scarcity of research on the health impact of communication about drugs.

2. Disclose financial interest and be credible..

3. “Physicians and consumers should hold the FDA and pharmaceutical manufacturers responsible for maintaining credible information in social media regarding the benefits and risk of therapeutic products.” (Greene & Kesselheim, 2010)

Social Media for Healthcare Marketing

Its Proven

According to Demi & Cooper Advertising and DC Interactive Group, 41 percent of patients say social media affects hospital choice – yet only 26 percent of hospitals in the U.S. participate in social media. (Willner)

Marketing cost can go down.When not participating in Social Media

there could be a perceived negative connotation.

Conclusion

Social media brings awareness to an audience, in the healthcare field, it is beneficial to those who have an illness or are looking to treat their illness

Social media caters to a larger audience and gives people more accessibility to information as well as care

On the other hand, social media is also a breeding ground for the publication of false information- it’s important for people to look for credible sources

A benefit for healthcare providers is that social media is a marketing tactic for promotion of goods and services

References 24 outstanding statistics & figures on how social media has impacted the healthcare industry. (2013, September). Retrieved from https://getreferralmd.com/2013/09/healthcare-social-media-statistics/

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Marouchos, A. (2015, December 28). The 6 Benefits of Social Media in HealthCare. Retrieved from LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/6-benefits-social-media-healthcare-andreas-marouchos

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Stuart, H. (2006, February). Media Portrayal of Mental Illness and Its Treatments: What Effect Does it Have on People with Mental Illness? CNS Drugs, 20(2), 99 - 106. Retrieved from http://link.springer.com/article/10.2165/00023210-200620020-00002

Trader, J. (2013, June 24). Social media and healthcare: Navigating the new communications landscape. Retrieved from http://www.healthcareitnews.com/blog/social-media-and-healthcare-navigating-new-communications-landscape

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Willner, S. (n.d.). The Importance of Social Media in Healthcare. Retrieved April 25, 2016, from http://infinitymkt.com/the-importance-of-social-media-in-healthcare/