ASOURCE Times

Characteristics and risks of SNS

SNS has become a well-established tool for communicating not only with people close to us, but also with people we don't know directly. There shouldn't be any problem with using SNS in itself, but medical professionals are required to take different considerations than other people due to their social responsibility and the fact that many professions are legally required to maintain confidentiality. There may be cases where

A notable feature of SNS is the speed at which it spreads, and once it spreads, it is impossible to stop it from spreading; in other words, it is nearly impossible to erase everything. Therefore, if an unexpected reaction occurs, it may become uncontrollable and cause significant damage. Although there are legal procedures for deleting other people's posts online, they are not likely to be effective enough to justify the cost and time. Furthermore, due to the nature of information, even if it is deleted after the fact, it has already spread, so even if it is possible to stop the spread of damage, it will not reduce the damage that has already occurred.

Generally, many posts on SNS are about the daily life of the poster. In many cases, even if the poster is anonymous, the poster can be easily identified. In addition, even though proper nouns are not used in the content of the post, the person in question may be able to be identified, or someone other than the person in question may misunderstand that the post was about them.

How will the reader receive it?
It is important to think carefully and use carefully.

Every move of a medical professional is attracting more attention than he or she thinks. The reason behind this perception is due to public trust and confidentiality obligations. A long time ago, at the scene of a train derailment, a train driver took a photo of the scene and shared it on social media, which quickly went viral and caused an uproar. On the other hand, when a boat carrying students on a school trip sank overseas, a student on board posted the incident on social media, and although the poster soon died in the water, it received attention from all over the world. . Even if posts are about the same public transportation accident, the reason why the ratings are polarized is due to the attributes of the poster. On the other hand, as a flight attendant, the driver must give top priority to the safety of the passengers, but the students on the school trip were probably highly praised for their efforts to convey the tragedy without regard for the impending danger to their lives.

Even if it is a record of the daily lives of medical professionals, it is an extraordinary experience for patients, and there are a certain number of patients who take it for granted that they should take care of themselves first. Such patients may look at healthcare providers' SNS with interest. For example, even if you post something with a limited scope, such as ``I went to a drinking party right after I finished my surgery,'' it might spread for some reason and catch the attention of patients and their families. . If the postoperative course is unfavorable, and the hospital, date, and doctor's name can be identified, people who see the post will be able to identify the surgery that was similar to their own, even if it was not the surgery that they actually underwent. Sometimes it can get you in the mood. In such a case, at least you won't feel good. Therefore, it is important to avoid posting posts that might make others think that you are referring to them, even if they do not contain proper nouns. In the above case, you are writing about your private life after work after surgery, but if something happens that shakes the relationship of trust, the other person may not necessarily interpret it favorably. In fact, the SNS posts of the doctor being sued in a medical malpractice lawsuit are sometimes submitted as evidence to criticize the doctor's humanity.

Communication with patients
Purposeful use of SNS

In the case of a general practitioner, it is difficult to distinguish between personal and clinic information, but in the case of a working doctor, if the doctor communicates with a specific patient in a way that is visible to other people through the doctor's personal SNS, the patient's treatment may be difficult to distinguish. Complaints may be made to the hospital about the lack of equality. In general, you need to be careful when communicating with patients on a daily basis using personal email or direct messages on SNS. Even if a medical provider has many interactions on a daily basis and no history remains, the other party often maintains a history. If the relationship deteriorates after the fact and the matter is submitted as evidence in a court case, etc., the first thing that can happen is that the person is using personal property even though it is his/her job, which tends to be interpreted as confusion between public and private matters. Additionally, if the medical provider does not keep records, there is a risk that the patient will only use the parts that are convenient for the patient. Recently, there has been an increase in online medical consultations, so I think there are more opportunities to communicate with patients and their families outside of face-to-face meetings. In cases like this, it is important to use the hospital's official tools to communicate in a way that leaves a record, even if it is cumbersome.

When it comes to information that touches on patient privacy, non-medical professionals, including patients, often react more sensitively than expected compared to medical professionals who come into contact with patient information on a daily basis. When touched by subtleties, humans react emotionally. You need to put yourself in the shoes of a non-medical person, think about how you or your family would feel if the same thing happened to you, and treat the information with care.