Docs get social on the job
A new study suggests that doctors—like the rest of us—are using social media to stay plugged in. In fact, according to a new study, about one in four U.S. physicians use social media daily to scan or explore medical information.
The survey of nearly 500 cancer specialists (oncologists) and primary-care doctors also found a large number of docs are sharing medical information too, about 14 percent, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center in Baltimore.
The biggest surprise from the data was the heavy use of online physician-only communities, which may point to the fact that many physicians feel more comfortable chatting with their peers in close knit online groups instead of a more public space like Twitter or Facebook.
Physician specialists who participated in the survey said they were more likely to use social media to keep up with innovation, while primary-care doctors say they use it to keep in touch with and learn from colleagues.
A whopping 60 percent of the respondents said they found social media to be a great way to stay current on quality medical information. They also said social media has helped them improve care for their patients.
Researchers believe these numbers will continue to climb due to the rapid demands in the amount of information required for medical practice. Social media so far, seems to be the best way for doctors to stay current with the most up-to-date medical news.
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health enews staff is a group of experienced writers from our Advocate Health Care and Aurora Health Care sites, which also includes freelance or intern writers.
