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Introduction
Social media in healthcare today can have several meanings. For instance,
Fernandez-Luque and Bau (2015) discuss the use of the internet to search for healthrelated information, the use of the same social media networks in different countries,
and how the panic of an outbreak such as Ebola can spread through social media.
These are just a few of the many topics and meanings that exist for social media in
healthcare, and for the purpose of this executive summary, the meaning will be
narrowed down to the presence of hospitals in social networks, their usage of social
media, and the influence that social media has on hospitals.
According to one article, out of the 3,371 hospitals involved in a study, 94.4
percent had a Facebook, 50.8 percent had a Twitter, 99.1 percent had a Yelp page, and
99.4 percent had Foursquare check-ins (Social Media Underused, 2015). These
statistics demonstrate the increasing presence of hospitals on social media, yet the
usage of social media differs. This same article argues that most of the hospitals
involved in the study use social media employee-related purposes or general
observations, and not as a way to interact with patients (Social Media Underused,
2015). Fortunately, this is changing, and every day hospitals are realizing more and
more the importance and magnitude that social media has on the hospital as an
organization and on its patients. Jung et al. (2015) state that a hospitals Facebook
page could be a quality indicator. They explain that the number of likes on a hospital
page was not only an indicator of patient satisfaction, but also of quality of patient care
(Jung et al., 2015). Additionally, Glover et al. (2015) state that it is unknown the extent to
which the ratings of 1-5 stars now available on Facebook are related to the hospital
quality or patient satisfaction. However, Glover et al.s (2015) study found that
unsolicited feedback on social media and hospital rating sites corresponds to patient
satisfaction and objective measures of hospital quality. They also found that hospitals
with lower rates of 30-day hospital-wide unplanned readmissions have higher ratings on
Facebook than hospitals with high readmission rates (Glover et al., 2015). As shown,
social medias impact on hospitals is increasingly positive. Following this discussion, an
overview of how meaningful use and social media influence or affect hospitals is
imperative.
Metzger et al. (2013) discuss some of the top challenges of meaningful use for
hospitals in their article. Beginning in 2011, physicians and hospitals that are eligible
can receive incentives for achieving meaningful use of a certified electronic health
record (EHR) (Metzger et al., 2013). Additionally, Metzger et al. (2013) discuss that
there are ten mandatory requirements that hospitals need to demonstrate to receive
incentive payments and ten menu requirements of which he hospital needs to meet
five. For instance, one of these requirements is to provide more than 50 percent of
patients who request it with an electronic copy of their health information within 3
business days (Metzger et al., 2013). Another requirement is to provide more than 50
percent of patients requesting discharge instructions with an electronic copy of their
discharge instructions at the time of discharge (Metzger et al., 2013). Metzger et al.
One well-known hospital that currently uses social media is the Mayo Clinic. The
Mayo Clinic has their own center dedicated to social media called the Mayo Clinic
Center for Social Media (MCCSM) (Social Media, n.d.). The MCCSM is a first-of-its-kind
center that focuses on health care and builds on Mayo Clinics leadership as an early
adopter of social media tools (Social Media, n.d.). MCCSMs philosophy is that they
believe individuals have the right ad responsibility to advocate for their own health, and
it is the centers responsibility to help them use social media tools to get the best
information, and connect with providers as well as one another (Social Media, n.d.).
Their mission is to lead the social media revolution in health care, contributing to health
and well being for people everywhere (Social Media, n.d.). Additionally, Mayo Clinic has
the Social Media Health Network (SMHN) which provides access to tools, resources
and guidance for organizations as well as individuals who want to use social media for
health and health care (Social Media, n.d.). A quick walkthrough of Mayo Clinics
website reveals all the tools and resources it has, such as webinars and learning
modules. The Mayo Clinic is an excellent example for other hospitals to follow and take
ideas from in order to succeed in social networks and become more connected with the
community.
Conclusion
Social media is here and it is here to stay. As shown above, social media and
hospitals are growing together, and there is evidence that shows the benefits of
hospitals involved in social media. The most common social networks are Facebook,
Twitter, LinkedIn, and Foursquare, and many hospitals have accounts on at least one of
these social networks. A simple like on a Facebook page, or a check-in on
Foursquare, or a review on Yelp can lead to improvements for a hospital over time. With
hospitals rapidly working towards achieving meaningful use, it is wonderful to see that
they are also involved in social media, despite it not being a requirement for their
incentives. Mayo Clinics Social Media Center is a wonderful example of a hospital
organization succeeding in social networks continuing to grow. Overall, hospitals should
continue to move forward and use social media to the fullest capacity and learn to adapt
to a new time in which all documentation, communication, and information will be
completed electronically.
Quiz Questions:
True or False: The use of Social Media is a requirement for Meaningful Use for
Hospitals and providers. (Answer: False)
What is the range for the number of organizations in California who have social
media accounts?
o A. 150-250
o B. 250-350
o C. 350-450 Correct Answer
o D. 450-550
The number of likes on a hospitals Facebook page was not only an indicator of
patient satisfaction, but also of ____________ of patient care. (Answer: quality)
References
Fernndez-Luque, L., & Bau, T. (2015). Health and Social Media: Perfect Storm of
Information. Healthcare Informatics Research, 21(2), 6773.
doi:10.4258/hir.2015.21.2.67
Glover, M., et al. (2015). Hospital Evaluations by Social Media: A Comparative Analysis
of Facebook Ratings among Performance Outliers. Journal Of General Internal
Medicine, (Preprints), 1-7.
HHS.gov (2014). More physicians and hospitals are using EHRs than before. Retrieved
from http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2014pres/08/20140807a.html
Jung, Y., et al. (2015). Identifying Key Hospital Service Quality Factors in Online Health
Communities. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 17(4), e90.
doi:10.2196/jmir.3646
Mayo Clinic (n.d.). Health Care Social Media List. Social Media Health Network.
Retrieved from http://network.socialmedia.mayoclinic.org/hcsml-grid/
Metzger, J. et al. (2013). Meaningful Use for Hospitals: The Top Ten Challenges. CSC.
Retrieved from
http://assets1.csc.com/health_services/downloads/CSC_Meaningful_Use_for_Ho
spitals_The_Top_Ten_Challenges.pdf
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http://network.socialmedia.mayoclinic.org/mccsm-smhn/
Social Media Underused in Patient Interactions. (2015). AACN Bold Voices, 7(3), 27.