What should (or should not) Health Care Providers 'take away' from patients active on social media?

Last Sunday, December 11th, the popular Health Care Social Media” Tweetchat - hosted by @HealthSocMed and moderated by @danamlewis presented the following topic #3:

"What should HCPs take away from observing patients online in (public) Social Media channels? What should they NOT take away? Why?"

The #hcsm chat participants shared a number of good tweets in response to topic #3. This post presents a curated summary of those responses.

Handle	Tweet
	Power of Community & Communication
@shereesepubhlth	They shouldn't take away communications that will influence whether to keep treating the patient. That's an ethics no-no.
@abrewi3010	HCP should take away the power of community which is a major tool against diagnosis loneliness.
@davidcookemd	Say hi. "How're you doing?" HCP's are /should be part of the community.
@abrewi3010	Communication takes at least 2 active parties practicing mindful listening. All & everything in Healthcare boils down to this idea, I think
@bwolf95	It's very important and needed. We need to share our perspective and use our resources as professionals
	Interactions with Patients
@csebastian	How do HCP's treat patients when they see them in the grocery store or out and about town?
@lalupuslady	Some online patients are venting the pain and isolation they feel no one understands them and are looking for empathy.
@billwongot	I will also add... how do HCP's treat one another when they see them in community or at conferences?
@pfanderson	I'm kind of grateful that no one sponsors my posts. While discreet, I still say things I might not elsewise
@pfanderson	Personally, I feel like it is important to be nonpartisan, balanced, strife to avoid bias in many areas
	Education & Training
@elizabe85727641	HCP's can learn with/from others via Social Media to discover valuable themes-literacy level, concerns- from posts, >find uncommon knowledge
@shereesepubhlth	They should take away how patients view delivered care, ex. posts about wait times, lack of time w/ Drs, communication, office staff issues.
@abrewi3010	There has to be a way to incorporate this into medical school or masters of public health programs. Formalize the job
@lalupuslady	If Health Care orgs would use Social Media as an extension of wellness and care programs, believe that would help w/ prevention and adherence
@pfanderson	Librarians are HUGELY involved in health literacy #healthlit and #ptsafety and #PatientEducation
	Advocacy & Potential Conflict of Interest
@abrewi3010	They should not take away the idea that everyone is an advocate. Advocacy is more than calling oneself an epatient, etc.
@mahoneyr	Seems to conflict with purpose of discussing actual things with actual people, not sponsored things with sponsored people
@heltweet	Even in public forums, professional #ethics require that #hcps not regard people as legitimate #research objects without their consent
@tiffanyandlupus	I disagree. A Social Media Ambassador doesn't simply boast an event is "great". They are there to share their insights
@billwongot	Yup... and definitely can be tricky when we use patient blogs as research material.
@tiffanyandlupus	That may still fall under the social media ambassador title actually! Some health orgs aren't as SocMed savvy U R needed
@tiffanyandlupus	Sponsorship does not diminish the hard work, expertise, or validity of the individual under contract. Transparency is key!
	Don’t Forget the Patients!
@lalupuslady	HCP's should understand that some patients are transparent and helpful offering support and resources.
@davidcookemd	Observing patients on #SoMe helps clinicians understand what disease outcomes are important to patients.
@thebingle	Get a sense of needs from patients. Perhaps learning pt exp is a key HCP's need. Don't get negative view on all patients by few idiots
@tiffanyandlupus	I think the important key HCP's should take from Patients sharing online is listening to their stories. Many have clinical value.
@bwolf95	By patients voicing their concerns on soc med and physicians seeing it, they can find a different approach that will benefit
	Compensation
@shereesepubhlth	Is it better if they disclose whether or not compensation is paid. If my posts are sponsored, I post disclaimer
@mahoneyr	I find HCP's less credible if paid to speak about a particular drug's virtues rather than a particular disease state
@survivorshipit	Agree--financial independence key to self-defining one's advocacy/education efforts
@tiffanyandlupus	Final Thoughts: Patient Advocates/Social Media Ambassadors deserve to be paid for their amazing work. Advocacy is NOT easy esp for patients!
@pfanderson	It helps. But people also deserve recompense for the work. Not all have the freedom
	Miscellaneous
@amolutrankar	There’s value in industry partnerships, though; don’t want to dissuade them if accountability policies are in place
@davidcookemd	Probably of benefit if @twitter and @facebook and @instagram were more involved in healthcare innovation/research.

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