Analysing the Impact of Social Media for Extending Outreach of Hypertension Services in a Northern State of India: A Computational Study on Twitter

Abstract

Introduction: Integrated communication media strategy has been used to extend outreach of preventive services for different diseases. Limited literature is available in addressing hypertension through such unified media strategy, especially using twitter as a social media tool. The present study aimed to document an integrated communication media strategy using twitter for extending reach of hypertension services on social media. Methods: The study used an exploratory quantitative research design using an integrated model of media communication, developed through an extensive literature review and iterative delphi technique. The context specific messages viz. text, photographs, videos or infographics at specific time intervals (3-4 posts/ day), targeting prevention of hypertension were developed and posted on twitter handle over a period of 9 months (December-August, 2020). For evaluation of the intervention, key indicators namely audience, applause, amplification, visibility were analyzed. Results: The study showed that there has been an exponential growth in number of followers during implementation of intervention. An exponential growth in applause, impressions and engagements were recorded in the respective time span. The maximum visibility was recorded in the month of July with (User Profile Clicks= 38, URL clicks = 35, and Hashtag clicks= 4). Conclusion: The integrated media intervention using twitter has been successful in extending outreach of hypertension prevention services. The model focused upon context-specific twitter messages highlighting hypertension to diverse stakeholders, which indicates potential of twitter in widespread dissemination of messages pertaining to hypertension for awareness and advocacy.