Clicks for credit : an analysis of healthcare professionals' social media use and potential for continuing professional development activities

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have examined social media habits and utilization patterns among various groups of healthcare professionals. However, very few studies have evaluated the use of social media to support continuing professional development activities. The goal of the 2023 Clinical Education Alliance social media survey was to explore how HCPs interact professionally with social media, describe utilization trends, and identify barriers to using social media to disseminate CPD content.

METHODS: We conducted an online anonymous, voluntary survey of healthcare professionals contained in the Clinical Education Alliance learner database from January to March 2023. The survey was distributed via email and all learners were invited to participate regardless of profession or specialty. This survey consisted of 16 questions and collected demographic information and social media utilization and habits of healthcare professionals.

RESULTS: Of the 2,615 healthcare professionals who completed the survey, 71.2% use social media. Most respondents were physicians (50.6%) practicing in an urban setting (59.6%) and have been practicing for more than 15 years (70.5%). The most widely used platform was Facebook (70.7%), but there were no significant differences among the different professions. Of the respondents who use social media, 44.5% used social media to access continuing professional development-certified activities. Surveyed learners preferred passive participation with social media content. Participant-reported concerns include issues with legitimacy of the information, privacy, time constraints, and institutional barriers.

DISCUSSION: As the continuing professional development community continues to evolve and seek new innovative strategies to reach healthcare professionals, the findings of this survey highlight the need to identify and enact social media-based strategies aimed to engage healthcare professionals and provide them with unbiased evidence-based education.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2024

Erschienen:

2024

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:29

Enthalten in:

Medical education online - 29(2024), 1 vom: 31. Feb., Seite 2316489

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Van Ravenswaay, Logan [VerfasserIn]
Parnes, Alex [VerfasserIn]
Nisly, Sarah A [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

Accredited education
Continuing professional development
HCP survey
Healthcare education
Journal Article
Social media

Anmerkungen:

Date Completed 19.02.2024

Date Revised 22.02.2024

published: Print-Electronic

Citation Status MEDLINE

doi:

10.1080/10872981.2024.2316489

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM368492583