Impact of social media on healthcare providers: a literature review of the benefits, challenges, and quality assurance

Abstract

Background:  As the world advances technologically, social media has become an essential part of the lives of billions of people worldwide and affects almost every imaginable industry.  With the increasing focus on digital technology today, the healthcare sector increasingly recognizes social media as a crucial platform for promoting healthcare, health promotion, career development, practice promotion, recruitment, and collaboration.
Objective: This review aims to illuminate the global use of social media and explore its role as a crucial tool in the healthcare field as seen by healthcare professionals.

Method: Peer-reviewed journal articles published between 2015 to 2024 were searched in two data bases - Pub-med and Google Scholar. Forty articles were selected and coded in terms of author, publication year, journal area, country, and social media used for health purposes.

Results: Literature findings are best categorized as professional networking and collaboration, health promotion, physician- patient relationship and professional education and training. However looking at the dark side of social media we are facing  risk of fast dissemination of false news and misinformation, privacy and confidentiality concerns and unethical behavior shown on social media platforms .

Conclusions: Assessing the credibility of the sources and content available on social media sites is essential for regulating the content of information available on social media platforms. Healthcare providers should adhere to ethical and professional standards to protect patients’ privacy and confidentiality. Social media platforms should be prudently used to mitigate the challenges and amplify their benefits.