Chapter 15 - Role of social media in telemedicine

Abstract

Healthcare professionals and patients are familiar with social media that is freely available and widely used for communication and monitoring in healthcare in recent years. Overall medical care has been delivered remotely through these telemedicine apps that have the best access to care for some populations, such as those in isolation, with limited access to specialist care and in rural areas. Further, monitoring patients in their homes and rural areas without easy access to healthcare services can improve the healthcare services of such individuals and communities. The COVID-19 pandemic has created a unique opportunity to use and access such services. Telepharmacy service has been created and operated during the COVID-19 pandemic. This application has allowed patients to ask questions related to their health or medications, have online consultations, and allow patients to keep in touch with their pharmacists. Most healthcare professionals have identified social media as an excellent mode to offer and disseminate scientific and technological information among professionals in improving their knowledge and skills in healthcare. Even though social media has been identified as an excellent tool in patient education and management, still it has not gained the full trust of healthcare professionals or patients. Some healthcare professionals are hesitant to interact with patients due to the issues with ethical and professional dilemmas related to the privacy of patients and the possibility of publishing inappropriate information in addition to the cost, availability, technical requirements, patient, and healthcare professional acceptability. Even though the use of social media in telemedicine is well supported by evidence, the patient perspective on the transition from traditional healthcare delivery to telemedicine via social media has largely been ignored or less studied. Ignoring the patient-related factors can have a negative impact and may lead to reduced patient compliance and satisfaction, unless the use of technology in healthcare delivery is aligned with patient preferences and wishes as well as being accessible and intuitive to use. A well-established system with preset guidelines and procedures will minimize the complications associated with telemedicine. It is important to explain the procedure, its strengths, advantages, and limitations to the patients prior to the commencement of the teleconsultation. Some countries have included appropriate regulations and policies for the use of telemedicine as a healthcare delivery method and due attention has been given to social media as well. Maintenance of patient privacy is to be considered a top priority. Further research is required to investigate the optimal method to integrate social media-delivered telemedicine into the healthcare delivery systems. Properly planned educational programs targeting the patients and potential users of social media as a modality in telemedicine will help in reducing these misconceptions and will allow better use of it as an alternative. It will be beneficial to use the full potential of social media as a tool in telemedicine till a universally acceptable, cost-effective, user-friendly telemedicine application is developed.