It can be a very exciting time deciding to begin utilizing social media for your organizations. The risks and benefits have been weighed, and it is time to get started! When getting started there may be some questions you have. The first important question is which social media network you should begin with.
So, which of the many social media platforms should your organizations use?
To help narrow your decision consider the following questions:
- How much time do you plan to invest and maintain your social media site(s)?
- Who will be responsible for managing your social medial site(s)?
- How will you measure success?
- Are you prepared to develop and implement a social media policy?
- Do you have enough content to be successful?
Along with the previous considerations, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), have the following considerations when determining which social network is best for your office:
| Posting | At least one a day | Several times a day | Several times a week |
| Timing | Content appears in a newsfeed for several days | Content is constantly changing | Content appears in the Instagram feed for up to one week |
| Style | Longer, more evergreen | Driven by trends/hashtags | Compelling images/videos |
| YouTube | Other (e.g., Snapchat) | ||
| Posting | Several times a week | As video becomes available | At least once a day |
| Timing | Content appears in the newsfeed for several days | Content lives permanently on the channel | Content may appear for a limited time |
| Style | More serious | Produced videos | More casual, point-and-shoot |
Best Practices
Regardless of which network you choose to use for your office, the following best practices should be considered:
- Understand HIPAA The same rules regarding patient privacy that apply to everything else you do in healthcare also apply to social media activities.
- Clearly define how information posted will be used.
- If comments or questions on your social media platform are approaching HIPAA violations, take them offline. Ask patients to call your office for more details.
- Don't post anything you wouldn't say in an elevator or coffee shop.
- State clearly that social media is not to be used for personal medical advice.
Have additional questions about utilizing social media in your office? Feel free to contact us by email: support@hcp.md or by phone: 855-427-0427.