Social media

Having access to online health information doesn’t make you a doctor

in Social media | 22 responses

Recent data suggests that over 60 percent of American patients consult the web first before going to a doctor.That's all good, and even encouraged, but trouble comes when they feel that online health information can replace physician advice.Bryan Vartabedian talks about these so-called "amateur physicians," and how they think they know more than they actually do. There is a danger of knowing too much information, and being unable ...

Should patients talk with their doctors using social media?

in Social media | 6 responses

As both patients and doctors find themselves increasingly on Twitter and Facebook, more are wondering whether they should be talking to one another using social networking outlets.This issue has come up before, most recently when the New England Journal of Medicine asked whether doctors should friend their patients on Facebook.Pediatrician Bryan Vartabedian looks further at the issue, and sees it fraught with potential risk.He points out that sharing ...

Saying no to a re-tweet request, and whether Twitter as a legitimate news source

by | in Social media | 2 responses

The other day I re-tweeted a tweet from someone whose Twitter activity I enjoy very much. I like where his links take me, and I appreciate the intellectual and emotional honesty of his own writing. The message I re-tweeted was about Gardasil, Merck’s HPV vaccine marketed in the US.Diane Harper of the University of Missouri is a prominent researcher who was heavily involved in the Gardasil development program. Over the ...

KevinMD Live Q&A today at 2:00pm Eastern

in Social media | no responses

I'm doing a live Q&A today at 2:00pm Eastern.Any topic is on the table. Health reform, blogging, Twitter and Facebook, or my new Verizon Droid. Click on the window below to leave your question.

$1 for every new Twitter and Facebook follower, raising the Thanksgiving Drive stakes

in Social media | 5 responses

Thank you all for participating in the Thanksgiving Drive.As of today, there have been 400 new Twitter followers, and 130 new Facebook fans since November 1st.I'm now raising the stakes.The contribution will now be doubled, meaning $1 for every new Twitter and Facebook follower will be donated to the United Way of Greater Nashua. Including a generous contribution from Joan Kelly, $730 has been raised thus far.$1 for every new Twitter and Facebook follower, raising the Thanksgiving Drive stakes

Health care social networking basics for doctors

in Social media | 8 responses

Originally published in HCPLive.comby Enoch Choi, MDPatients have embraced social networking tools that allow them to share information, offer support, and compare healthcare experiences. Physicians should also use these tools to connect with their patients and local communities and provide general medical information.Health care social networking basics for doctors Healthcare social networking has made impressive inroads into the mainstream, as like-minded folks find each other online ...

KevinMD Twitter and Facebook Thanksgiving Drive 2009

in Social media | 22 responses

I'm happy to announce the KevinMD Twitter and Facebook Thanksgiving Drive 2009.KevinMD Twitter and Facebook Thanksgiving Drive 2009 My forays into blogging, along with Twitter and Facebook, have provided me with countless new opportunities that I'm tremendously appreciative of.Now, I want to use the power of social media to give back this Thanksgiving season.What is this?KevinMD Twitter and Facebook Thanksgiving Drive 2009 It's simple.  ...

Doctors have a duty to engage in social media

in Social media | 10 responses

Some physicians may be hesitant to participate in social media outlets, like Facebook and Twitter.Well, get over it.Great post by pediatrician Bryan Vartabedian who addresses this topic. Indeed, physicians have lost control of the online message, especially with, according to recent data, 60+ percent of patients visiting the web first when looking for health information.Instead, anti-vaccine proponents and homeopaths have embraced the Internet, and now exert tremendous influence ...

Everybody loses when physician conferences restrict medical news reporting

in Social media | no responses

by Robert Stern, MA, CCMEPAlmost a decade ago, I had a simple idea -- deliver fast, accurate medical news to clinicians in a format that was easily accessible, and turn that news into a "teachable moment." Almost five years ago, that idea became reality with the launch of MedPage Today.Monday through Friday (and if news is happening, Saturday and Sunday, too), MedPage Today delivers on our promise of "Putting Breaking ...

How a nursing student got expelled for blogging

in Social media | 12 responses

Here's an example of how health care professionals should not blog.Michelle Fabio writes, in a guest post on Better Health, about the travails of a nursing student, who blogged about watching a patient give birth:

When school officials read [nursing student] Yoder’s post, which included a description of the baby as a “creep” and “a wrinkly, bluish creature, all Picasso-like and weird, ugly as hell, covered in god knows what, ...

What if newspapers reported science the way they cover the World Series?

in Social media | 6 responses

by Larry Husten, Ph.D.October brings the Nobel Prize announcements and the World Series. No one will mistake media coverage of one for the other. Each Nobel Prize will get one article and 10 seconds on the evening news. A soft feature will quote the new Nobel recipient’s complete surprise at the 4 AM phone call.By contrast, baseball, like all major sports, is covered in great depth, by legions of sports ...

Scenes from Blog World Expo 2009 and the future of medical social media

in Social media | 4 responses

One of the largest gatherings of medical bloggers took place this past week at Blog World Expo 2009 in Las Vegas.The panel discussions were enlightening and insightful, and it was wonderful to meet so many of my fellow medical bloggers in person.I participated in a panel discussion talking about the history of medical blogs, entitled, The State of the Health Blogosphere: We’ve Come A Long Way, Baby. Simply having ...

How Google Sidewiki will impact drug company websites

by | in Social media | 3 responses

Take a look at the screen shot below, from Pfizer’s homepage. Believe it or not, I, or anyone else, can now leave comments “on” any website (such as Pfizer.com) using a new tool (currently in beta) from Google, called Sidewiki.How Google Sidewiki will impact drug company websitesGame-changer? You bet.While the use of Google’s Sidewiki has ramifications across the entire web, for every type of site or industry, I’m going ...

September 2009 was the busiest month on record, thanks to you

in Social media | no responses

September was the busiest month in the 5 1/2 year history of the blog.September 2009 was the busiest month on record, thanks to youA variety of new voices and insight have recently been featured, providing plenty of impetus for debate. Many thanks both to these guest posters, and to those who leave comments. If you'd like to submit a post for consideration, which can be re-purposed from ...

Why our health care system promotes disease maintenance

by | in Social media | 3 responses

When I was growing up in the 1970s, news was different, and this is not just the everything-was-better-in-my-day nostalgia. News was about news. News was not sexy. What has changed? Robert Reich's Supercapitalism, makes the answer obvious: competition.Interestingly, according to economic theories, competition is good for the consumer – it drives quality up and prices down. That may be true for toilet paper, but it has not panned out for ...

Medical students using Facebook and Twitter can get expelled

in Social media | 8 responses

by Chris Emery, Contributing Writer, MedPage TodayA large number of U.S. medical schools say students have posted unprofessional material on Web sites such as MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter, but few schools have adequate policies in place for dealing with such behavior, a new study found.Medical students using Facebook and Twitter can get expelled Of 78 U.S. medical schools that responded to a survey, 60% reported incidents of ...

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