Assignment 1- A review of Social Media Presence and Professional Audit

Entering the graduate program, I envisioned hours of reading and analyzing information. Instead, I was tasked with performing a professional audit and curating a social media plan. I have always used social media in my personal life to share pictures with family, send memes to friends, and learn about social events in my community. I never thought I would have to intertwine Social Media with my professional role. I now realize this is more of a naïve or archaic view; the modernization of health is here, and I need to adapt.

In forum discussions with classmates, I was asked, “What do you consider an appropriate channel for sharing health information with the public.” And all of a sudden, my personal bias was put to the forefront. I previously believed that anyone should be able to share health information because information is constantly changing, and science always welcomes opposing views. The issue with online health information is a lack of quality and reliability. Authors of medical information found on social media sites are often unknown or are identified by limited information. (Ventole, 2014) Previously, I would use social media to share articles that I found thought-provoking and challenged my current view of the situation. I now realize that quickly, these can damage my professional image. Facebook has been around long before I had thought about a career in Health Care. Now, employers are using social media to vet candidates; admissions to medical and professional programs will also comb through your social media to determine admission status. I had thought I could keep my personal and professional lives separate, but personal and professional contacts often overlap in our small town. Since completing my social media plan, I have made my social media profiles private and put together groups to share information with the appropriate audiences. When used wisely and prudently, social media sites and platforms offer the potential to promote individual and public health, as well as professional development and advancement. (ventole,2014)

When performing my professionalism audit, I had to think about where I fit in the healthcare system and what is my role. Nowadays, patients are rarely looked after by just one health professional. In the context of a complex healthcare system, an effective teamwork is essential for patient safety as it minimizes adverse events caused by miscommunication, and misunderstanding of roles and responsibilities. (Babiker et al., 2014)Currently, my part is to support my clients in advocating for themselves supporting them with system navigation. As I work on my graduate studies, my role will expand further into multidisciplinary teams and Leadership. And as teams grow and evolve, so does the technology they use. I intend to increase my online presence through the use of my e-portfolio. I will use privacy controls to try and mitigate the overlap between personal and professional contacts and use social networking sites like Facebook and Instagram for social interactions. I will use blogs, YouTube and Linked In for professional networking.

Refrences:

Babiker, A., El Husseini, M., Al Nemri, A., Al Frayh, A., Al Juryyan, N., Faki, M. O., Assiri, A., Al Saadi, M., Shaikh, F., Al Zamil, F., Husseini, E. M., Nemri, A. A., Frayh, A. A., Juryyan, A. N., Saadi, A. M., & Zamil, A. F. (2014). Health care professional development: Working as a team to improve patient care. S, 14(2). http://www.sudanjp.org

Ventola C. L. (2014). Social media and health care professionals: benefits, risks, and best practices. P & T : a peer-reviewed journal for formulary management, 39(7), 491–520