A research letter published yesterday in JAMA reports patterns of online physician behavior. A recall survey of 68 state board executives was taken on disciplinary matters related to online misconduct. Of the 48 respondents, 44 reported having taken at least one disciplinary action in eight categories covered by the survey. Transgressions include inappropriate online ... Continue Reading about Is Online Physician Behavior Really That Risky?
Defining Social Standards for Doctors
There's lots of discussion about how doctors should carry themselves online. What are the social standards that guide doctors online? I think it's simpler than we make it out to be. Consider that we all live and work in communities. We're are shaped by those around us. None of us do what we do alone. And what I do and how I behave affects the way my community ... Continue Reading about Defining Social Standards for Doctors
How Often Should a Physician Blog?
Recently someone asked how often a medical blogger should post. True-to-form there was the suggestion that you post daily. This is a timeless question. But I’d be careful believing that there's a firm answer. What you do with your blog and how often you do it depends upon what you seek to gain from your presence. If you are dependent upon advertising you must ... Continue Reading about How Often Should a Physician Blog?
Doctors and the Permission to Speak
Let’s say you’re a doctor and you have an idea, opinion, or a new way of doing things. What do you do with it? It used to be that the only place we could share ideas was in a medical journal or from the podium of a national meeting. Both require that your idea pass through someone’s filter. As physicians we’ve been raised to seek approval before approaching the ... Continue Reading about Doctors and the Permission to Speak
Social Tools Don’t Create New Motivations
Clay Shirky in Here Comes Everybody suggested, "Social tools don't create new motivations so much as amplify existing ones." People use applications to meet a need. I often tell the story of a pediatrician friend I met for lunch a couple of years back. After 'selling' him on the merits of blogging and Twitter, he countered by suggesting that he had no use for ... Continue Reading about Social Tools Don’t Create New Motivations
A Doctor’s Online Reputation is Not a Hospital’s Responsibility
I spoke to a group of academic physicians recently. Afterward I was and asked, “Shouldn’t my hospital be responsible for my online reputation? I don’t have time to look after that sort of thing. And wouldn’t it make sense for them to promote my research?” 4 thoughts on online reputation: 1. The management of academic physician's online reputation should be an ... Continue Reading about A Doctor’s Online Reputation is Not a Hospital’s Responsibility