Abstract
The aim of this study is to stimulate discussion about the potential of social media as an important learning tool for healthcare professionals through a critical review of the literature. We conducted a critical brief review of the literature published from 2010 to 2021 in PubMed, using the search terms "social media", "healthcare professional", "online learning", "online education", and "medical education", and some variations according to MeSH. Besides the Pubmed database, searches were conducted through the website https://mededu.jmir.org/. Many healthcare professionals use social media to find and share health information, communicate with colleagues and trainees, advertise their clinical practices, engage in health advocacy, impact health policy decisions, exchange developments in their fields, and publicize their research. However, this is still a topic without established conclusions. Although many studies describe social media as important tools to improve the learning of health students regarding communication, professionalism and ethics, limitations related to health information found in social media are the lack of quality and reliability. In conclusion, we recognize the numerous potential strengths of social media as educational tools, but many points are still unclear and need to be persistently understood, evaluated, and discussed.
Highlights
Social media has become an integral method of communication for a vast majority of our digitally connected society (Madanick, 2015) and has a tremendous impact upon every facet of our personal and professional lives (Faizi et al, 2013)
Despite the high popularity of personal use of online social media, a low percentage of students and instructors use them for educational purposes (Chen & Bryer, 2012), for the purpose of education social media has been used as an innovative way (Siddiqui & Singh, 2016)
The search for studies related to the topic occurred in the PubMed database using combinations of the keywords "social media", "healthcare professional", "online learning", "online education", and "medical education", and some variations according to MeSH
Summary
Social media has become an integral method of communication for a vast majority of our digitally connected society (Madanick, 2015) and has a tremendous impact upon every facet of our personal and professional lives (Faizi et al, 2013). Due to the universal nature and pervasive informational function of interactive digital and mobile technologies, social media has transformed from being used informally in educational settings to gaining formal acceptance by students, faculty, and administrators (Piotrowiski, 2015). Representing a new paradigm in education, Web 2.0 communications, encompasses a wide variety of services, such as blogs, and social networks (Moran et al, 2011). Given that a large number of internet users are teachers and students, social media seem to have greatly influenced the way we teach and learn. The role of emerging social media may offer new opportunities to enhance the teaching and learning experiences (Alabdulkareem, 2015). The online social networks are increasingly being used by college students, and by instructors for different reasons. Despite the high popularity of personal use of online social media, a low percentage of students and instructors use them for educational purposes (Chen & Bryer, 2012), for the purpose of education social media has been used as an innovative way (Siddiqui & Singh, 2016)
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