The Social Media is defined by Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein as a group of Internet-based applications that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content or in layman’s term a communication tool on the Internet that is open, social and sharing. What had some people worried about their doctors and lawyers using the Social Media are perhaps the words “open, social and sharing.” Considering the case of Dr. Alexandra Thran of Westerly Hospital on Rhode Island, the fear that doctors and lawyers would blab about their cases in the social networks is validated.

The state medical board had reprimanded Dr. Thran for posting confidential patient information on her Facebook account. While Dr. Thran did not actually name the patient, a third party was able to identify whom she was referring to and it was enough to put her into trouble. We all know that doctors and lawyers are bound by confidentiality clauses and clients pay for this discretion.

There is actually no problem if doctors and lawyers open their own Facebook and Twitter accounts as long as their purpose of having one is personal. They should keep in mind that they are bound by a confidentiality clause because of the intimate details that their clients give them and such should keep their clients’ cases out of their social network accounts. Perhaps there is just the need to set guidelines on what should be shared and what’s off limit as the social Media is also one way wherein information could be exchanged by doctors and lawyers which would also be vital to their operations.

“8 out of 10 Internet users are looking for medical information online, but only 25 percent of these individuals are checking the source of this information,” according to Dr. Kevin Pho, MD of KevinMD.com. Pho added that the most important aspect of Social Media is to connect with patients, “There’s a role for doctors to get online and guide patients to better and more reputable sources of information.”

Guidelines on Professionalism in the Use of Social Media have already been published by the American Medical Association. When it comes to Social Media usage, lawyers like doctors also face the same dilemma and have a number of similar restrictions. In the case of personal vs. professional, 9 out of 10 Supreme Court Justices recommend creating two different personas for Social Media usage.

Just as with medical professionals, Social Media is also a way of sharing and exchanging knowledge for lawyers. The Social Media is used by law firms to reach and interact with more clients in most cases. The Rottenstein Law Group (RLG) is one of those law firms that post updates of certain cases on its Facebook account then tweet about it. By doing so, it has shared valid information and updates about the Depuy hip replacement recall on Facebook and Twitter.

References

thenextweb.com/2011/09/23/in-social-media-doctors-lawyers-and-financiers-oh-my/

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_media

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