Introduction
Recent empirical research studies reveal that various jurisdictions are rapidly adopting large-scale application of technology and technological components in the delivery of healthcare services. The contemporary medical profession heavily relies in both social media and smart phones when delivering care services to patients (Bowden & Smits, 2012). Needless to say, technology in healthcare presents a number of key benefits such as enhanced and efficient operations, minimized instances of readmission into hospital care, and better care and outcomes among patients who receive such care. Nevertheless, it is equally fundamental to scrutinize how platforms such as Twitter, Myspace, Linkedin, Istagram, Youtube and Facebook may lead to negative outcomes to patients when they are receiving care. One of the greatest concerns when using social media in healthcare is the issue of privacy. It is against this background that this paper seeks to explore the perspectives of both patients and healthcare settings in regards to ethical, legal and professional matters that are usually linked to the use of smartphones and social media in hospitals.
Reflections
According to McGonigle and Mastrian (2015), social media tools such as Twitter, Facebook, Netlog and Linkedin are rapidly becoming part and parcel of crucial medical components that professionals in this field use on a daily basis. Even though social network platforms have proven to be effective and powerful in the delivery of healthcare services to patients, there are still emerging concerns on their appropriateness especially in regards to interfering with the privacy of patient. Before delving deep into social media and smartphones in healthcare, it is perhaps crucial to also reflect on the course topics that were learned in the module.
To begin with, this module provided the best opportunity to study the foundation of knowledge related to nursing profession. From the outset, it became evident that nursing is a crucial science in the medical profession and that is why it has to evolve with the passage of time. For instance, as information technology becomes deeply ingrained in society, nursing as a profession cannot be left behind. In addition, information systems and information science are closely related to each other in such a way that they cannot be separated when discussing nursing science and informatics. On the same note, cognitive informatics and cognitive science are applied in same measure when there is need to achieve robust growth in the nursing profession. While embracing these aspects of technology in nursing, ethics is also a major consideration. In other words, it may not be useful at all to embrace technology at the expense of eroding ethical standards upon which nursing if firmly founded upon. The working knowledge of nursing and the roles played by information should be in tandem with each other. It is irrefutable that informatics play a very important role in the wider nursing profession bearing in mind that the 21st century has its own knowledge needs that stem from technology.
Second, the aspect of administrative information systems and electronic security were discussed at length in the module. When discussing issues related to privacy and ethical applications of technological platforms, secure utilization of the available technologies also come into play. It is definitely expected that clinical outcomes and patient safety should be promoted and enhanced using informatics tools without inflicting injury on the privacy of patients and other clients visiting healthcare settings (such as family members and other close relations). If information is used appropriately and in ajudicial manner, then it can immensely improve the overall standards of community health.
Privacy concerns, legal and ethical issues
There is a growing concern in the proper application of social media and smartphones among nurses. A number of healthcare settingsare already in the process of enhancing stringent policies and measures of controlling how social media and smartphones are used among healthcare professionals. Nevertheless, social media presentsnumerous benefits to physicians and nurses only when applied in the most proper manner. It is prudent to note that the rising popularity of social media and smartphones has culminated into a number of effects even as nursing professionals seek to deliver care to patients. In fact, proper measures should be put in place to ensure that social media platformsdo not infringe physician-patient privacies (Palvia, Lowe, Nemati& Jacks, 2012).
There are severalemerging ethical concerns regarding the use of smartphones and social media platforms. For instance, healthcare professionals rarely stick to the ethical codes of conduct stipulated by their respective regulatory organs. Some healthcare personnel may indiscriminately discuss patients’ health records in social media using their smartphones. This can be very demeaning especially if such information reaches a patient and other close relations.
It is crucial to mention that healthcare professionals should alwayswork towards safeguarding the confidentiality or privacy of patients who visit their healthcare settings. Hence, they are not supposed to disclose or openly discuss personal data obtained from patients with the third parties. The Federal Health Insurance Portability Act of 1996 (HIPA) elucidates that professionals in the health sector should always strive to safeguard personal details of patients. Personal health information should be made as private as possible and not be made public in social media outlets such as Facebook and Tweeter.
Merits and demerits of using smartphones and social media in healthcare
First, medical professionals are in a position to share swiftlycrucial information with colleagues especially in regards to vital patients’ data. When physicians and nurses are working as a team, it is sometimes necessary to share patients’ information in order to expedite the whole process of treatment. Hence, social media (through private messaging) and smartphone devices come in handy. Professionals can also share vital medical information from the internet. Some reliable internet sources can provide crucial information to nurses and other medical experts when delivering care services to patients. Besides, social media and smartphones expedite the transfer of the much-needed knowledge (McGonigle&Mastrian, 2015).
On the other hand, disclosure of patients’ health records to other members of the public is a serious concern that has eroded the trust between patients and physicians (Lee &Meuter, 2010). There is no encryption software used to store crucial information in smartphones. Hence, it is possible for any other user to access information stored in a smartphone due to lack of authentication features. Data loss and theft of smartphones are also rife and therefore, the devices are not completely safe.
Let us think of a scenario whereby a nurse is on a night duty. Consider a schedule that is very tight besides unusual inflow of patients from diverse backgrounds and diagnosed with various types of ailments. Her friend in a concert texts and informs her how much you are missing in the concert because of her busy schedule. All of a sudden, she is called into the emergency room to attend to a patient who has been involved in a road accident. The victim is unconscious and as she shifts her focus towards him, she realizes that he is a famous person. She also notices that he is a lead singer in the concert she has just missed. Before doing anything else, she quickly snaps a photograph of the unconscious patient with her smartphone and immediately posts it to her friend.
Option 3: Conclusion of the scenario above
During her day off, the nurse sign into her Facebook account and talks about how she don’t regret missing the concert because she had an opportunity to meet Jerrod in person. She even brags that she got his number and then posts a picture of Jerrod on Facebook and Instagram. She bears in mind that most of her contacts would never recognize him anyway and so there was no harm.
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