Lots of social media training for doctors is centered on rules.  It’s about the things we shouldn’t do and the trouble we can create.  I’ve always thought that we should focus a little more on the opportunity that social affords for doctors.  Perhaps I’ve been too heavy-handed in my approach.

After talking to some smart folks, I’m on board with the idea that medical trainees need boundaries for those learning the ropes.  The consequences of mishaps outweigh the upside of involvement.  So the younger they come, the more they need black and white digital barriers.

Maybe training young doctors in the ways of wired world should evolve along a continuum.  Beginning prescriptive and rules-based in medical school and internship with a loosening of the reigns as residency progresses.  Perhaps at some point it should flip from what young doctors shouldn’t do to what they must do.

I’m on board with rules-driven training on the front end so long as we all promise not to hold ’em there forever.