31-Oct-08 10:00 AM CST

Physicians Can Use Social Media Tools to Bond With Patients

Physicians, to their patients' delight, have caught the social media bug. An increasing number of physicians are taking advantage of networks such as Facebook and Twitter to enhance communication with their patients.

While the authority of an M.D. provides a platform from which to speak in face-to-face interactions, doctors who are social media newbies must first hone their listening skills.

Ed Schipul was recently quoted in an article on Physician's Financial News entitled, Physicians Can Use Social Media Tools to Bond with Patients:

“Doctors approach social media as if they know everything, and it’s just not like that,” says Schipul. “Doctors are brilliant, but just because you’re brilliant doesn’t mean I’m going to have you repair an engine on the airplane I’ll be flying, because you’re not trained in that area. First, you have to walk in the room and listen.”

The room, in this case, is virtual, and Schipul says that social media are phenomenal tools to enable listening.

The article also offers Jennifer Texada's, program manager of digital and new media at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, insight:

At M.D. Anderson, listening is helping patient advocacy staff assist patients with problems they have, such as being lost in the hospital or understanding a particular diagnosis. “We listen to what the conversations are about in social media, and we pass that on to patient advocacy,” says Texada, adding that physicians are active, too.

Ed Schipul offers a creative solution for physicians who are wary of embarking into social media themselves, but want to better connect with their patients:

“If I was a doctor and was doing social media outreach, one of the first things I would do is send an e-mail to all of my employees and ask if any of them are already blogging and active in social media,” suggests Schipul. “They’re already on my payroll. And if they’re doing [social media] and they’re excited about it, then all I have to do is change their job responsibility.”

Physicians' Financial News offers information on managing personal and professional business and finance matters that medical school's seven year curriculum forgot to cover.