One request I often get from tech and social media savvy patients is this, “Doc, can I add you as my friend on Facebook?”.
My reply is something like this : “ No, I don’t add patients as friends on facebook, but you can communicate with me on my professional facebook page”. I sometimes draw flak on this social media policy but as I’ve mentioned in our last #HealthXPh tweet chat and Hangout On Air (Social Media and Medical Professionalism: A manifesto from #HealthXPh) this is the best setup for me and my patients so far.
I do realize though that patients probably wanted a social media manifesto of their own, just like their physicians. This manifesto empowers patient to “own up” their health and bring health care conversations to their level.
To refresh, a manifesto as defined by Merriam-Webster.com, is :
a written statement that describes the policies, goals, and opinions of a person or group.
A social media manifesto self commits an individual- a patient or a healthcare professional, how he/she intends to behave on the different social media platforms. We at #HealthXPh believe a manifesto is different from a guideline. A guideline is enforced by a governing body based on existing laws and policies. In the Philippines, we don’t have healthcare social media laws or governing bodies yet. A manifesto is more powerful because it’s an expression of what an individual or group’s intends to do on social media.
If you are a patient and wanted to join the conversation on patient’s social media manifesto, join us this Saturday February 22, 2014 10:00 AM Philippine Standard Time (UTC + 8 ) on #HealthXPh tweet chat and Hangout On Air.
