What to Consider Before Using Social Media in Healthcare

In a previous video, we went over some of the many reasons why social media is so beneficial in healthcare. Your patients are already using, so you can further educate them and reach a wider audience through these social platforms. It’s also cost-effective and while giving you a chance to show off your organization’s success.

Pretty exciting, right? Well, before you dive right into using social media as a healthcare organization, there are some disadvantages to note before you do this.

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https://etactics.com/blog/pros-and-cons-of-social-media-in-healthcare
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The first talkpoint to consider is the security risk. More online accounts could make you more susceptible to a cybersecurity attack without the right protection. In the first half of 2018, over 56 percent of the 4.5 billion compromised data records were from social media incidents.

It’s important that your organization has proper security in place to prevent attacks. Don’t share passwords of these accounts, and make sure to sign out of them in case any devices become lost or stolen.
Also, ensure that employees are properly trained on HIPAA to reduce compliance risks. If they don’t know what is permissible to post on social media, it’s a bigger risk for a HIPAA violation. The last thing you want from your social media is a lawsuit.

Another disadvantage to social media is how fast false information spreads. 75 percent of the top health stories in 2018 were misleading and contained false information. On Twitter, false or fake news is 70% more likely to be retweeted than the truth.

But this actually gives a benefit to why your organization should use social media. If your practice uses these platforms, you can help educate patients on health information and combat fake news.

People also use the internet to try to self-diagnose. It’s easier to Google what their symptoms mean with more health information online. 65% of Americans try to self-diagnose using the internet rather than visiting a medical professional. Except so many conditions have similar symptoms, which is why 74% of these people become stressed over the results of their searches.

It isn’t beneficial for anyone if patients are using the web to self-diagnose. But if you’re on social media, you can provide credible knowledge of conditions and also urge patients to visit a professional rather than just seek answers online.

Some people are worried about using social media because of the lack of control. Anyone can say anything, and you may be scared you’ll receive negative comments. This is why it’s important to have a social media policy so your employees know how to handle these situations. These policies also inform your employees on what is or isn’t appropriate to post. After all, once it’s on the internet, it’s there forever. And you don’t want to risk an employee posting something that would hurt your reputation.

Our final disadvantage of social media is that it’s time-consuming. If you want to see impactful results, you have to stay consistent. This requires time coming up with a strategy, training individuals on the platforms, and then actually executing it. But the more you use social media, the better you’ll become at using it. Don’t bite off more than you can chew. If you start small and work your way up to having more channels, it will be easier to handle all that they demand.

Using social media can be overwhelming. There are so many factors to consider. While it has so many benefits, there are still disadvantages that you’ll want to focus on before diving in. Think about how you’ll handle these challenges, and come up with a strategy and a social media policy. Once you analyze the pros and cons of using this form of marketing, you’ll be able to appropriately use the platforms to have a positive impact on both your practice and your patients.

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