A growing number of Americans are turning to the Internet for health information and many are using social media tools to engage with patients like themselves or health-care providers. But findings recently published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research suggests that a significant portion of the health-related content on social networking sites is irrelevant or devoted to marketing or promotion of products, events and institutions. Study authors also warned that social media can quickly spread misinformation to a broad audience.
In the study, Stanford medical student Akhilesh Pathipati and colleagues analyzed Facebook search results for common medical conditions. Pathipati explains in a Sacramento Bee opinion piece how health-care providers can adopt social media strategies to address the concerns mentioned above. He writes:
Providers should build online support systems that reach all patients. A PricewaterhouseCoopers poll found that 40 percent of respondents would use social media to cope with chronic medical conditions. If patients are embarrassed by having a stigmatized illness though, they may lack that coping mechanism.
In the short term, providers may want to set up private groups on social networking sites in which patients can interact with other affected individuals. Setting up an anonymous network may prove to be even more useful, as anonymity has been shown to help people share more about their health. The long-term goal should be to find ways to reduce the stigma associated with certain illnesses.
Previously: Lack of adoption of social media among health-policy researchers = missed opportunity, More reasons for doctors and researchers to take the social-media plunge and A reminder to young physicians that when it comes to social media, “it’s no longer about you”
