Etiquette Guidelines for Healthcare Professionals
Etiquette refers to a set of formal rules and behavior considered sacred and acceptable. These labels have long been established conventionally and are closely followed both professionally and socially. They refer to the principles that guide us.
As a complex web of unwritten rules that often apply to social interactions and behavior, etiquette reflects our cultural, moral, and various social norms. Etiquette always evolves with the demands of society, with respect, kindness and attention at the heart of good manners.
We can master the rules of etiquette, leading to self-confidence, improved social skills and professional development; thus, understanding the basic rules can help us avoid unpleasant situations. When we learn how to properly handle social situations, we are more likely to act in a socially responsible manner including within the social media world.
Social media use in healthcare has positively impacted medical education and outreach through the frequent publication of high-quality educational materials of potential value to trainees, physicians, and other clinical professionals. These contributions can also be of potential use and interest to the public, who can now understand more than ever the specialty and role of physicians in healthcare. The use of food, similes, emojis and other explanations can add a light element to the content and be used in the classroom, or breakroom.
However, when medical discussions take place in public forums such as Twitter, or when certain emojis or adjectives are used to describe medical conditions in humans or patient samples, what is posted may be misinterpreted.
The authors provide examples of potential areas of caution, suggestions on how to be positive, and brief guidelines on social media etiquette on #PathTwitter that may apply to other social media platforms widely used by healthcare professionals. While the points discussed here may be familiar to health care professionals using social media for virtual medical education, the concerns noted here (such as using language such as “beautiful” to describe Cancer cells) still exist and will exist in the future and it is particularly important to rethink our behavior.
Supporting Article: A Workplace Etiquette of Apology
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