I really enjoy nursing students – at all levels of nursing education. I love helping them formally via precepting them as well as informally helping them through mentoring, etc. Nursetopia has many popular posts among nursing students, and I can often tell the season for nursing papers by the number of hits to my posts about free, full-text nursing journal articles (here and over here and even here). It makes me smile.
A nursing student contacted me recently for help with a “trends in nursing” kind of class. She bravely chose the topic of social media use within the nursing profession. I say “bravely” because the peer-reviewed evidence of the topic in the nursing literature is scarce with 49 PubMed articles from a “nursing, social media” search. And not even all of those are related to nurses’ actually use of social media. Yikes. Kudos, though, to this student for developing this knowledge within herself and passing it on to others. My mind leaps at the thoughts of how beneficial this learning will be in her nursing practice. I’m providing my answers to her questions below this week, and I thought I’d let her see the real-life nursing practice implications and benefits of social media through her very own questions, leveraging my existing social media networks for her and allowing nurses from all over the world to weigh-in on her questions. Oh, yeah…fun stuff!!
So, take a peek at the questions below, and leave a comment by Sunday, January 27, 2013, to answer one or all of them. I know many nurses within the blogosphere and other social networks have already ruminated on this topic. If you’re on of those, leave a URL in the comments directing the nursing student (and all other nurses and nursing students who will read this in the future) to your already existing thoughts on social media use within the nursing profession. And, if you’re not a nurse but still work in the healthcare profession, yes, you jump in, too! As always, thanks for contributing to the growth of one of our own!
The Gypsy Nurse
January 21, 2013 1:38 pmI’m spreading the word! Social Media in nursing is increasing exponentially. I am personally involved with several group chats via twitter as well as communities via google + I am amazed with the strength and information that is being shared via social media.
Rebekah
January 21, 2013 1:43 pm#HCSM; lifeinthe fastlane.com; FOAM(Free Open Access Meducation) google it.
Janie
January 21, 2013 3:25 pmI learned the hard way by being on a website used by other members of a organization that I worked for a made a comment and it was held against me. I have since deleted my profile on the website and just say that the job was just not me.
Nursetopia
January 21, 2013 3:42 pmThanks for sharing, Janie. That sounds like a difficult moment, for sure. If you don’t mind – Did you think the post was harmful or it might be viewed oddly before you posted it, or were you pretty unaware? When you say your comment was “held against you,” does that mean you were disciplined for the action? Do you think that experience changed the way you use social media as a healthcare professional?
Sean
January 21, 2013 4:50 pmJoni,
Of course I’m sharing this one! I’ll even try to answer the posted questions in a blog post.
Nursetopia
January 21, 2013 6:33 pmThanks, Sean!
Phyllis Grabot
January 25, 2013 9:57 amWe find using social media, especially Facebook, very beneficial. I work with Barco’s Nightingales Foundation, and no matter what type of nursing profession one pursues, Barco’s Nightingales Foundation is committed to honoring the heroic work of nurses. Nurses’ stories are rarely heralded. Their struggles and successes are an everyday occurrence; their unconditional commitment expected. And yet, their triumphs are real – in the hearts and minds of the people they’ve cared for and in the quiet moments of connection when skill and kindness are extended in the comfort of another.
Barco’s Nightingales Foundation will be sharing stories from nurses and student nurses across the country and throughout the world. We hope that by bringing their stories to life, more will join us in saluting their work and the work of all nurses, and that some may be inspired to embrace nursing as a profession.
We invite you to join Barco’s Nightingales Foundation as they continue to celebrate nurses and the profession of nursing at http://facebook.com/BarcosNightingalesFoundation.