The Role of Social Media in the Healthcare Industry

We can all agree that social media has become a part of everyday, mainstream life. As with many new technologies, some industries are slower to adapt than others. In this case, the healthcare industry has been a little on the slow side of social media adaptation.

However, a recent report found that,

"In a survey of more than a thousand consumers, more than two-fifths of individuals said social media did affect their choice of a provider or organization. Forty-five percent said it would affect their decision to get a second opinion; 34 percent said it would influence their decision about taking a certain medication and 32 percent said it would affect their choice of a health insurance plan."

These findings are not implying that social media is the deciding factor for choosing a healthcare providor, but they do provide very valuable information. 

The most important of this information can be summed up in a quote from Farris Timimi, medical director for the Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media:

"Our patients are there. Our moral obligation is to meet them where they're at and give them the information they need so they can seek recovery," Timimi said. "This is not marketing; this is the right thing to do."