Essay On A Nurses Guide To The Use Of Social Media

While advancements in technology have positively impacted the nursing field, it has also created huge concerns with patient privacy and sharing of protected health information leading to detrimental effects to patients and their families. Indeed, technology is changing the face of healthcare with positive innovations to reduce medication errors and documentation errors. However, technology at our fingertips has created immense concerns with sharing of protected health information of patients via social media, email and other means of communication via technology. This paper addresses why I feel the advancement of technology has numerous deficits that need more research and implementation of new laws and policies to safeguard the

Communication has been permanently changed by social media. A wide conceptual definition of social media, as cited in Ressler & Glazer (2010), is “The online and mobile accessible services that enable individuals to connect, collaborate, and share with others in real time.” Social media has an obvious influence on informal communication style and represents both possibility and liability for healthcare institutions. As cited in Bernhardt, Alber, & Gold (2014), “Social media provide healthcare professionals with tools to share information, to debate health care policy and practice issues, to promote health behaviors, to engage with the public, and to educate and interact with patients, caregivers, students, and colleagues.” It also presents challenges, including risks to information accuracy, organizational reputation, and individual privacy. Social media can be a very helpful in communicating among nurses and other healthcare providers while creating professional connections, and sharing experiences, but guidelines for appropriate use by healthcare providers are essential. Whether or not certain healthcare organization decides to use social media as a communications tool - social media policy still need to be implemented. Policies help establish an organization 's rules and expectations around social media.

“Facebook remains the most popular platform for those using just one social media site—fully 79% of those who use just one site report using Facebook. Most Facebook users are actively engaging with their networks on the site. As opposed to simply reading or viewing content, 65% of Facebook users frequently or sometimes share, post or comment on Facebook” (Duggan, Ellison, Lampe, et al, 2015). As discussed previously, privacy and confidentiality is a right that everyone has no matter what. Therefore, healthcare professional’s privacy and communication cannot be entered and examined however; rules and guidelines have been put into place to manage confidentiality in the healthcare setting. In 2003, these guidelines were manifested and are known as the Privacy Rules, which are controlled by HIPAA. These rules were established to safeguard personal identifiable health data, which include an individual’s date of birth, social security number, address, photographs that may identify the patient, and past and current medical history (U.S Department of Health and Human Services, 2006). HIPAA defines “individually identifiable health information” as information that is a subdivision of health data, including demographic information gathered from an individual and is generated or received by a health care provider, health plan, employer, or health care clearinghouse and connects to the previous, current or future physical or

So the things I would do to protect myself and my patients is first with any social media I use I would set it up as private. That way I can accept or decline whoever I want. Also I think it is very important to watch what you post because even if you don’t have patients on your account people can screenshot, repost and share whatever you shared on social media. So at that point once you post something it is out of your hands. (This is really bad if you live in a small town where everyone knows everyone.) I really think that the types of stuff you like, post or say on social media is a reflection of who you are and I personally wouldn’t want patients knowing about things such as commenting on “Justin single because his girlfriend cheated on him with his best

We Can But Dare We: A Look into the Use of Social Media in Healthcare

Users tend to send updates to their profile throughout the day while at work. Nurses at Innovis Health in Fargo, North Dakota utilized Facebook to allow next shift nurses to prepare for their shifts; they did not post patient names however, did post patient specific information (Ratliff, 2015). Innovis Health also saw a post a first responder had posted on Facebook who responded to an unusual call (Ratliff, 2015). United States Department of Health and Human Services must continue to regulate these violations because a goal of the United States health care system is to increase efficiency, quality, and effectiveness of service. With simple mistakes, could cost health care employees, their jobs and facilities,

Social media has taken over the way that we interact with one another. It is leading the way in which we communicate with family, friends, coworkers and strangers. It is also the way we keep up with our favorite celebrities and gossip. Social media and the use of smartphones are becoming more prevalent in business and the healthcare field as well. According to Pew Research Center, “62% of smartphone owners have used their phone in the past year to look up information about a health condition” (April, 2015). Technology, just like all things come with flaws

Edie Brous, RN, wrote an article on how the internet, social media and other new technologies have advanced. The use of social media has taken the free speech amendment to another level against those who don’t understand the restrictions. Nurses share ideas that they believed can be helpful when they post things but they must understand the legal risks of misusing. It’s becoming so broad that now different healthcare and professional organizations use it to communicate with their patients. There is a understanding to free speech limitation Brous notes:

In the present culture of the United States, social media has had a major impact in American society. It has a profound influence and intertwined itself in almost every aspect of the average American’s life. It ranges from providing updates of location of a person(s), events, and sharing personal moments. Even different industries are utilizing social media as a platform for communication, information, and sales mediums. One industry, the health care field has seen a rise in the utilization of social media. For instance, an emerging population of physicians are using social media apps such as Snap Chat, Facebook, and YouTube to educate, display surgical, and medical procedures while being performed. In contrast, as there are positive aspects of utilizing social media, a negative trait of social media is invading and exposing individual’s privacy. As of recent, a New York licensed nurse had to surrender her nursing license and sentenced to 3 years of probation for “moral unfitness in the practice (Bowerman, 2016).” She took photos with her phone of two unconscious male patient’s genitalia and shared them with coworkers. This has become an increasing issue and as the utilization of social media in healthcare is increasing, many ethical issues are developing. For instance, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) was passed for the adoption of a national standard for electronic health care transactions and code sets, unique health identifiers,

The rapid development of technology throughout modern society has initiated the widespread use of social networking. Social networking plays a positive role in healthcare when educating, communicating, or advertising. However, poor judgments have the power to turn this positive into negative and damage professional reputations. Griffith (2014) stresses the importance of understanding that protected health information is not a matter of open secrets. Whether a lawyer, doctor, nurse, or a secretary, it is important to avoid conditions that may influence the health and security of patients or clients, as well as their own professional reputation (Aylott, 2011). The Purpose of this paper is to explore the appropriate use of cell phones and social networking in healthcare and the importance of understanding the ethical boundaries between professional uses opposed to personal use.

The National Board’s Social Media Policy came about in March 2014 and developed to help practitioners understand their obligations

Although the times have changed, the important of maintaining patient confidentiality and privacy has not, especially on social media. With social media use becoming increasingly prevalent in daily life, it is important to ensure the safety and privacy of patients. Patient privacy is protected by law, and by the standards set out by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia; and health care providers, including nurses and student nurses, are required to ensure the health information of a patient is kept private and confidential at all times (Daly, Speedy & Jackson, 2014). Social media does have a place in nursing, with many institutions using it to better communication between nurses, however its use should be carefully monitored and users should be educated appropriately (Spector & Kappel, 2012).

This assignment is to introduce the risks of using social media inappropriately as a student and registered nurse, this could include confidential information or information about another student or colleague. The Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency (AHPRA) social media policy and the student code of conduct will be explored; this will gain the information needed to help justify the use of social media as a nurse.

At the same time, health care organizations find challenges in adopting social media. Hospital and medical practices are risk adverse and generally cautious about new technology trends without clear value. There are questions about whether social media use by hospital employees is a waste of time, or even worse, presents risks of violating HIPAA or leaking proprietary information. Hospital IT departments are concerned about security risks, such as the use of tinyurl.com, which can mask malicious Web sites. Privacy concerns, particularly the vulnerability of social media accounts, are also cited as a reason to avoid social media. (John Sharp 2010).

Using this viewpoint, health care leaders can see the importance of using social media to stay in tuned with what patients are saying. For a health care organization to succeed they must provide quality care and quality service. If the patient population is not satisfied they are likely to vocalize their opinions to friends and families through social media. Health care leaders can create blogs or chats where consumers can express their concerns as a means to fix issues the organization may be experiencing. The information generated from social media can then be used by health care leaders to improve the organization, with the hopes of making their organization a leader in their community.