The use of social media is now inevitable in all sectors, including healthcare. Initially, social media was mainly used for social purpose. However, currently, the use of social media has gone beyond online social interaction. A study that was carried out in 2012 revealed that 26% use social media for health issues. Hence, the use of social media is growing (Hamm et al ., 2013). There are two main categories of social media that are used in healthcare and they include general social media and healthcare-specific social media. Examples of general social media include blogs, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn while those of health-specific include HealthVault and MyNurseBook. The paper discusses the use of blog and HealthVault in the healthcare population.
Current Applications of Blogs and HealthVault in Healthcare
Blogs
Blogs have been used for a decade now despite the fact that its use in the healthcare sector was only recently discovered. A blog refers to a website where entries are written in a chronological manner. Blogs can either be used to disseminate news or for a commentary purposes. It is estimated that there are about 70 million blogs globally. Currently, blogs are massively used in healthcare for various purposes (Hamm et al ., 2013).
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Blog is mainly applied in healthcare to disseminate medical information to patients and the public (Bennett, 2014). Many healthcare professional and organizations are using blogs to disseminate accurate and actionable medical information to the public. The intention is to improve general health and well-being of the people. Blogs are also applied in healthcare sector to link care providers and patients. Blogs make it easy for a potential patient to find the required health care services he or she wants. Therefore, many health professionals use it as marketing tool to access potential patients. In addition, blogs are used to tell specific stories such as those of doctors and their patients. It is used to tell patient’s and hospital’s stories.
HealthVault
HealthVault is a health-specific social media platform that helps people to collect, store, and share health information with either close relatives or healthcare providers. It helps people connect with third-party applications and devices to effectively manage their health-related issues such as fitness and diet (Bennett, 2014).
There are various applications of HealthVault in the healthcare sector. First, healthcare providers use HealthVault to share crucial information with patients. This is because it helps in collecting, storing, and sharing of information. Secondly, it is applied to enhance collaboration between patients and healthcare providers. It enables patients and healthcare providers to easily share information online while at the same time doctors can easily access patient’s crucial health information. Besides, HealthVault is used to enhance engagement, especially with regard to self-care (Bennett, 2014).
Differences between General and Healthcare Specific Social Media Sites
The main difference between general social media and healthcare-specific social media is that the former can be used to share various kinds of information while the former is specifically designed for healthcare purposes. For instance, blogs can be used to discuss a variety of topics while HealthVault is only used to discuss health-related issues. In addition, general social media like Facebook and Twitter are primarily designed to allow online social interaction between users while healthcare specific social media are created to enhance sharing of health information between users (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).
Drawbacks of the use of Blog and HealthVault in Healthcare
The main drawback of using blogs and HealthVault in healthcare is the possibility of violating privacy issues. Privacy and confidentiality of patient information is crucial in healthcare sector. However, it is not easy to control information in blogs and HealthVault because it can easily be availed to other unauthorized parties (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). Blogs and HealthVault also limit the holistic patient’s information, making it hard to provide effective medical advice. Doctors cannot have a holistic medical history of the patients through the use of blog or HealthVault.
Social stigma is another drawback associated with HealthVault. Patients who share their health data to others through HealthVault can be stigmatized. For instance, patients who suffer from STIs such as HIV/AIDS can be stigmatized when their status become public. Consequently, their health can be worsened by stigmatization. Hence, both blogs and HealthVault have drawbacks that should be considered before they are applied in the healthcare sector (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).
Therefore, the collaborative white paper by NCSBN and ANA would apply to blog and HealthVault in terms of privacy and confidentiality issues. It would help physicians using the two social media platform to be aware that it is possible to violate the privacy and confidentiality of patient’s information through social media. The white paper also makes it clear that physicians who violate privacy and confidentiality go against the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).
Effects of Social Media on my Future Practice
Social media will have a significant impact on my future practice. Importantly, it will enable me to easily connect with my patients. As a result, I will be able to easily share health information with my patients. At the same time, social media will enable me to interact and share knowledge with other professional in the field. Consequently, I will be able to offer quality healthcare services to patients and understand emerging issues in my field (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010).
Professionals and healthcare providers can no longer avoid the use of social media in healthcare sector. Health professionals can now use social media such as blogs and HealthVault to enhance the quality of healthcare services, especially through sharing of information. However, it is important for physicians to safeguard the privacy and confidentiality of patients when they are using social media in healthcare.
References
Bennett, C. (2014). 5 Reasons to Include a Blog in Your Hospital Service Line Marketing Strategy . Retrieved from https://www.medialogic.com/health-care- marketing/blog/5-reasons-include-blog-hospital-service-line-marketing-strategy/
Hamm, M. P., Chisholm, A., Shulhan, J., Milne, A., Scott, S. D., Given, L. M., & Hartling, L. (2013). Social media use among patients and caregivers: a scoping review. BMJ Open , 3 (5)
Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media. Business Horizons , 53 (1), 59-68.
