We Can But Dare We
We Can But Dare We: A Look into the Use of Social Media in Healthcare
Sydney Sobocinski
Chamberlain College of Nursing
NR360: Information Systems in Healthcare
September 2014
We Can But Dare We: A Look into the Use of Social Media in Healthcare In the world today, smartphones are becoming the “norm”, with basic phones becoming nearly obsolete in recent years. Pairing the overwhelming presence of social media with the rise in usage of smartphones brings to light an entirely new set of problems and challenges regarding patient privacy. According to a 2010 study conducted regarding various boards of nursing, 67% of executive officers surveyed reported receiving complaints about nurses misusing social media (Spector & Kappel, 2012). Incidentally, social media use in healthcare has garnered many positive results as well. One study found that 67% of doctors use social media for professional use, and of their followers, 60% of social media users trust posts by their doctors and 55% of users trust posts by hospitals (Skram, n.d.). However, the question remains, with social media does the good outweigh the bad, and how do hospitals foster the good while impeding the bad?
HIPAA Regulations Due to the sensitive nature of the information kept by healthcare providers about their patients, principles were put in place to reduce the risk of breeching patient privacy. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) set national standards and regulations regarding the protection of patients’ privacy and personal health information (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS], n.d.). Under The Privacy Rule enacted by HIPAA, protection is governed over all, ‘Individually identifiable health information’ [which] is information, including demographic data, that relates to: the individual’s past, present or future physical or mental health or condition, the provision of health care to the individual, or the past, present, or future
Sydney Sobocinski
Chamberlain College of Nursing
NR360: Information Systems in Healthcare
September 2014
We Can But Dare We: A Look into the Use of Social Media in Healthcare In the world today, smartphones are becoming the “norm”, with basic phones becoming nearly obsolete in recent years. Pairing the overwhelming presence of social media with the rise in usage of smartphones brings to light an entirely new set of problems and challenges regarding patient privacy. According to a 2010 study conducted regarding various boards of nursing, 67% of executive officers surveyed reported receiving complaints about nurses misusing social media (Spector & Kappel, 2012). Incidentally, social media use in healthcare has garnered many positive results as well. One study found that 67% of doctors use social media for professional use, and of their followers, 60% of social media users trust posts by their doctors and 55% of users trust posts by hospitals (Skram, n.d.). However, the question remains, with social media does the good outweigh the bad, and how do hospitals foster the good while impeding the bad?
HIPAA Regulations Due to the sensitive nature of the information kept by healthcare providers about their patients, principles were put in place to reduce the risk of breeching patient privacy. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) set national standards and regulations regarding the protection of patients’ privacy and personal health information (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS], n.d.). Under The Privacy Rule enacted by HIPAA, protection is governed over all, ‘Individually identifiable health information’ [which] is information, including demographic data, that relates to: the individual’s past, present or future physical or mental health or condition, the provision of health care to the individual, or the past, present, or future
References: Fowler, M. D. (2010). Guide to the code of ethics for nurses: interpretation and application. Silver Spring, MD: American Nurses Association. Gaggioli, A. (2012). CyberSightings. Cyberpsychology, Behavior & Social Networking, 15(9), 512-513. doi:10.1089/cyber.2012.1555 Gill P.S., Kamath A., & Gill T.S. (2012). Distraction: an assessment of smartphone usage in health care work settings. Risk Manage Healthcare Policy 5(9), 105–114. doi: 10.2147/RMHP.S34813 Norton, A., & Strauss, L. J. (2013). Social media and health care - The pros and the cons. Journal Of Health Care Compliance, 15(1), 49-51. Retrieved from: http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.devry.edu/ehost/detail/detail?sid=b614377483634d2d-b65e946988e5d7ea%40sessionmgr114&vid=36&hid=126&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=heh&AN=85287334 Perkins, N.L., & Theis, A.R. (2011). HIPAA and social networking sites: A legal minefield for employers. Retrieved from: http://www.aao.org/yo/newsletter/201201/article02.cfm Skram, T. (n.d.) 11 health care social media stats to turn heads. Retrieved from: http://whprms.org/11-health-care-social-media-stats-to-turn-heads/ Spector, N., & Kappel D. M. (2012). Guidelines for using electronic and social media: The regulatory perspective. Retrieved from: http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJIN/TableofContents/Vol-17-2012/No3-Sept-2012/Guidelines-for-Electronic-and-Social-Media.html U.S Departments of Health and Human Services. (n.d.) Summary of the HIPAA Privacy Rule. Retrieved from: http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/summary/index.html What are the penalties for violating HIPAA? (2014). Retrieved from: https://kb.iu.edu/d/ayzf Wyatt, T. & Krauskopf, P. (2012). E-health and nursing: Using smartphones to enhance nursing practice. Online Journal of Nursing Informatics, 16(2), 10-14. Retrieved from: http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.devry.edu/ehost/detail/detail?sid=b6143774-8363-4d2db65e946988e5d7ea%40sessionmgr114&vid=23&hid=126&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=rzh&AN=2011651618