The growth of the digital health ecosystem has enhanced patient care, patient experience, and reduced the overall health cost. But due to the rapid growth and evolution of the digital healthcare system, physicians, patients, and health system administrators are facing difficulty in navigating potential solutions to addresses multifaceted problems. To overcome these problems, the American Medical Association has created its Physician Innovation Network (PIN), which connects everyone involved in the healthcare team. According to the AMA guidelines engaging early, obtaining diverse perspectives, and respecting the efforts of the physician are some key points that are introduced based on the interaction with the physicians and innovators involved in the PIN.
Social media is
increasing means to connect, exchange, and improve knowledge by empowering
individuals to self-manage their health.
Paul Studenic and the team has conducted a study to
determine the perspective of people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs) on
using social media health-related purposes in managing their condition.
The study included 992 participants from 56 countries. The
participants mostly fall between the age of 35 to 54 years. All the
participants were advised to fill a questionnaire online. The questionnaire was co-designed in
English by rheumatologists and patient research partners, which was translated
into various languages, including German, Italian, Spanish, Russian,
French, and Portuguese.
About
86% of participants answered 25 out of 31 questions and were included in the
analyses. The participants started to connect with other people with the same
medical condition. This platform was much utilized for seeking medical
information, knowing the treatment options, and exchanging experiences. Overall,
60% of participants have reported a good or very good experience with the use
of social media. Among various social media platforms, Facebook, Google, and
YouTube were the top platforms for health-related purposes, then followed by
Instagram.
Based
on the results, the study concluded that the use of social media for
health-related purposes is widespread among RMDs patients.
It mainly serves as a means to connect with people who have a similar
conditionand empowers individuals in self-management of their health condition.
Reference:
Studenic P, Stones S, Alunno A, Ritschl V, Nikiphorou E.
AB1233 People with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases connect and learn
about health-related issues using social media. Annals of the Rheumatic diseases. 2019; 78 (2).
