Responses to Martha and Precious
Martha Wydra
Sep 25, 2023 at 3:19 AM
Dr. Brown and Class,
The Use of Mobile Health Tools and Social Media in Healthcare
Introduction: Mobile health tools and social media have become integral in the healthcare sector, transforming how healthcare professionals communicate, educate, and collaborate (Topol, 2019). This document explores the use and purpose of mobile health tools and social media by healthcare professionals, assesses the existing social media and email policies, aligns them with ethical standards (American Nurses Association [ANA], 2015), identifies how workforce policies support ethical nursing practice, and proposes an interprofessional strategy to ensure patient privacy and ethical professional practice in the digital age.
Use and Purpose of Mobile Health Tools and Social Media: Mobile health tools encompass applications, wearables, and devices that empower healthcare professionals to monitor patients remotely, improve communication, and streamline healthcare delivery (Ventola, 2014). Social media platforms serve as information-sharing and engagement tools, enabling professionals to educate the public, collaborate with peers, and stay updated on industry trends (Fox & Felkey, 2015).
Assessment of Social Media and Email Policy: A comprehensive review of the organization’s social media and email policy is essential. Alignment with the American Nurses Association’s (ANA) Code of Ethics and ANA Guidelines for Social Media ensures adherence to ethical principles such as patient confidentiality, privacy, and maintaining professional boundaries (ANA, 2011).
Support from Workforce Policy: The organization’s workforce policy should emphasize the importance of ethical and professional nursing practice. It should provide clear guidelines on using digital tools, protecting patient privacy, and maintaining professionalism.
Interprofessional Strategy for Patient Privacy and Ethical Practice: One successful interprofessional strategy involves regular training and education on responsible social media and mobile device use. Healthcare professionals should know best practices, data security, and privacy regulations (Topol, 2019). Moreover, the development of secure communication platforms tailored to healthcare can enhance data protection (Ventola, 2014).
Conclusion: Mobile health tools and social media have revolutionized healthcare, offering opportunities for improved patient care, education, and collaboration. Aligning policies with ethical standards and implementing interprofessional strategies ensures patient privacy and ethical professional practice in the digital healthcare landscape.
References:
American Nurses Association. (2015). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements.
American Nurses Association. (2011). ANA Guidelines for Social Media.
Fox, B. I., & Felkey, B. G. (2015). Digital health in the pharmaceutical industry. American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy, 72(16), 1351-1359.
Topol, E. J. (2019). High-performance medicine: the convergence of human and artificial intelligence. Nature Medicine, 25(1), 44-56.
Ventola, C. L. (2014). Mobile devices and apps for health care professionals: uses and benefits. Pharmacy and Therapeutics, 39(5), 356-364.
Reply
PF
Precious Ferguson
Sep 25, 2023 at 6:29 AM
Dear Dr. Brown and fellow classmates,
Mobile Health Tools & Social Media in Healthcare
In this technological era, mobile health tools and social media are pivotal in healthcare, education, and research by enabling dissemination and fostering collaborative care approaches (Jeyaraman et al., 2023). As the trajectory for social media use continues to trend upward, it is essential for societal growth in knowledge and healthcare practices. Social media platforms (i.e., Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, etc.) provide healthcare professionals with a reliable method to share knowledge and relevant patient information, communicate, and professionally network with others (Jeyaraman et al., 2023). It is also a way to help improve health literacy in patients (Jeyaraman et al., 2023). At my current organization, social media has been used for these purposes. As it relates to mobile health tools, my current organization uses integrated medical equipment and devices such as vital signs machines, cardiac monitors, intravenous pumps, and digital capture devices on mobile phones for real-time communication of pertinent patient information to intra- and interprofessional members of the care team (Iuppa & Suresh, 2022). We also use online patient portals to communicate patient-specific information to patients to provide them with a more inclusive healthcare approach (i.e., laboratory results, radiographic imaging reports, data trends, etc.).
Social Media & Email Policy in Current Practice
The social media and email policies at my current organization were established to protect patientsâ€
privacy following the guidelines and recommendations outlined in the 1996 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and their organizational privacy and security policies (University of Miami Hospital & Clinics [UMHC], 2022). This policy ensures that social media is used appropriately by all those affiliated with the organization and that no patient-protected health and personally identifiable information is disclosed (UMHC, 2022). All posts must be professionally appropriate and respectful content (UMHC, 2022). According to the policy, medical advice and retaliation are prohibited; and the re-sharing of patient-generated content or any identifiers that could be perceived as official branding without prior written authorization by senior leadership within the Office of Marketing and Communications (UMHC, 2022). These workforce policies support ethical and professional nursing as they align with the views of the American Nurses Association (ANA, 2011, 2015) Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Social Media to protect patients†rights to privacy and confidentiality. Furthermore, it helps to promote a culture of safety, integrity, and ethical obligation and responsibility to patients and others within the working environment (ANA, 2015).
Interprofessional Strategy Proposal
Unintentional patient confidentiality breaches and professional misconduct can be caused through the use of social media and mobile devices (Jeyaraman et al., 2023). Therefore, one strategic way the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) nurse can ensure patient privacy and ethical professional practice by the interprofessional team is to emphasize the importance of personally and professionally separating social media usage and content and abiding by HIPAA guidelines and regulations (Jeyaraman et al., 2023). Doing so will decrease the risk of blurring professional boundaries, compromising confidentiality, and having to deal with disciplinary consequences and legal issues (Jeyaraman et al., 2023). Furthermore, as technology continues to advance, the DNP nurse must ensure organizational guidelines undergo ongoing modifications and the credibility of posted information to maintain staff and public trust (Jeyaraman et al., 2023). Additionally, the DNP can develop and implement educational training(s) for the interprofessional team on the safe use of social media and medical devices and maintaining organizational compliance (Iuppa & Suresh, 2022; Jeyaraman et al., 2023).
References
American Nurses Association. (2011, September). 6 tips for nurses using social media. https://www.nursingworld.org/~4af5ec/globalassets/docs/ana/ethics/6_tips_for_nurses_using_social_media_card_web.pdf
American Nurses Association. (2015). Code of ethics. https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/nursing-excellence/ethics/code-of-ethics-for-nurses/coe-view-only
Iuppa, N., & Suresh, S. (2022). Physician and nurse informatics collaboration boosts clinical practice, enlargement, and overall digital experience [White paper]. Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, 1-13. https://www.himss.org/sites/hde/files/media/file/2022/12/01/himss_nurseinfocollaboration_wp.pdf
Jeyaraman, M., Ramasubramanian, S., Kumar, S., Jeyaraman, N., Selvaraj, P., Nallakumarasamy, A., Bondili, S. K., Yadav, S. (2023). Multifaceted role of social media in healthcare: Opportunities, challenges, and the need for quality control. Cureus, 15(5), Article e39111. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.39111
University of Miami Hospital & Clinics. (2022, September). Social media policy. https://umhs-mhc.policystat.com/policy/12152039/latest
Regards,
Precious Ferguson
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