The “Meaningful Use” of Social Media by Physicians
Brian S. McGowan, Ph.D.Senior Director, Oncology;
Medical Education Group, Pfizer IncChair, Committee on Emerging Technologies in Education
Alliance for Continuing Medical Education
Consult Columnist, Social Media ConnectionsMedical Meetings, A MeetingsNet Magazine
The “Meaningful Use” of Social Media by Physicians
Blog: www.cmeadvocate.com Twitter: @CMEAdvocate
– Curator: #SoMeCME & #ACMEETC– Founder: #CMEchat (W’s 11amET)– Contributor: #Meded chat (Th4PM and 9PMET)
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– Member: Alliance for CME Group– Member: CME Group– Manager: MAACME
Quora: http://www.quora.com/Brian-S-McGowan-PhDG+: http://bit.ly/McBrian
Collaborators
Robert S. Miller, MD, FACPClinical AssociateSidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns HopkinsOncology Medical Information OfficerJohns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Bryan Vartabedian, MD, FAAPAssistant Professor of Pediatrics Baylor College of Medicine
Molly Wasko, PhDAssociate Professor and ChairUniversity of Alabama at Birmingham School of Business
Mazi Abdolrasulnia, PhDDebi Susalka
Desirae Freiherr
Kevin Pho, MDLawrence Sherman, FACME
Joseph Kim, MD
Disclosure
This research was funded by Pfizer, Inc.
As of August 15th our descriptive dataset has been made open access.
Themes For Our Presentation
1.Why did we conduct our research?
2.Why are we here?
3.What did we find?
4.Where do we go from here?
The “Meaningful Use” of Social Media by Physicians
Why Did We Conduct Our Research?
Where Does the US Rank in Quality?
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QUALITYHEALTHCARE
Safe
Efficient
Timely
Pt-
Cen
tere
d
Eff
ectiv
eE
quitable
PayersPatients
SolutionsEvidence-Base
http://trace.wisc.edu/docs/function-aging/pics/graying.gif
The [education] system as it is structured today is so
deeply flawed that it cannot properly support the
development of health professionals…this has left
health professionals unprepared to perform at
the highest levels…
http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/303/8/716.full
Driving Hypotheses: #1
The parallel movements of personalized medicine &
rapid-learning healthcare systems will both fail if we fail to establish a
culture (and science) of social learning within medicine
Driving Hypotheses: #2
The meaningful use of social media as an element of one’s commitment to life-long
learning is a natural extension of social learning theory…
What Do We Really Know About Physicians & SoMe Use?
Inconsistent Data of Docs Using SoMe
2% Twitter
4% Facebook
Sermo 2010
PeerView 2010 MCM 2010; unpublished
Do you use ____ professionally?
Inconsistent Data of Docs Using SoMe
(n~300) American College of Surgeons 2010: http://bit.ly/e5PiaP
Do you ‘have a Facebook account’?
Have you ever ‘used’ Twitter?
Do you ‘use’ YouTube?
Have you ever participated in an online health blog?
64% YES 36% NO
20% YES 80% NO
82% YES 18% NO
35% YES 65% NO
* ACS has a YouTube Channel
Inconsistent Data of Docs Using SoMe
Bosslet GT. J Gen Intern Medicine 2011
74% YES
42% YES
79% YES
94% YES
Have you ever used social networking sites?
N = 454
N = 137
N = 131
N = 186
Inconsistent Data of Docs Using SoMe
Bosslet GT. J Gen Intern Medicine 2011
If yes, what sites have you used?
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
Other
97%
14%
35%
5%
Docs: N = 137; n = 57
Inconsistent Data of Docs Using SoMe
Bosslet GT. J Gen Intern Medicine 2011
If yes, how have you ‘used’ these sites? Docs: N = 137; n = 57
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%
Personal
Professional
Both
89%
4%
7%
11%
Inconsistent Data of Docs Using SoMe
Inconsistent Data of Docs Using SoMe
What Do We Really Know About Physicians & SoMe Use?
ZIP
ZERO
ZILCH
NADA
NIL
0.0
Defining ‘Social Media’
Social media is defined as internet-based applications which allow for the creation and
exchange of user-generated content and includes services such as social networking,
professional online communities, wikis, blogs, and microblogging.
Defining ‘Meaningful Use’Hypothesis:There are 3 ways that HCPs ‘use’ social media:
1. To treat – engaging directly w/ patients about care2. To teach – providing timely & credible education3. To learn – sharing of medical information/knowledge
TO
TREAT TO
TEACH TO
LEARN
Bucket 1 Bucket 2 Bucket 3
Defining ‘Meaningful Use’
TO
TREAT
TO
TEACH
TO
LEARN
Bucket 1
Bucket 2
Bucket 3
Care
Info
Info
Defining ‘Sharing Medical Information’
• Sharing medical knowledge is defined as the exchange of information, advice, ideas, reports and scientific discoveries with other physicians in the medical community.
To
Learn
Bucket 3
Defining ‘Meaningful Use’
• What applications are used most commonly?• How?
– To lead/contribute– To follow/participate– To lurk and learn
• When?– Daily, weekly…
The “Meaningful Use” of Social Media by Physicians
Why Are We Here at #med2?
Rapid Dissemination & Crowdsourcing
• Establish a “new body of science”…
• Explore non-traditional data dissemination plans
• A call to Larry…
The “Meaningful Use” of Social Media by Physicians
What Did We Find?
A collaborative study
Adoption and Use of Social Media by Physicians to Share Medical Information
Purpose
Study Objectives:1. Study the adoption and use of the most commonly used ICT applications
to share medical knowledge with other physicians2. Compare the number of users who self report that they “Will Never Use”
these ICTs with the number of users that are “Current Users”3. Examine whether there are important differences between two physician
practices: oncologists and primary care physicians (PCPs).
Overall Study Purpose: To examine the attitudes , adoption and use of social media by physicians to share medical information Overall Study Purpose: To examine the attitudes , adoption and use of social media by physicians to share medical information
Methods/Framework
Planning:• Conducted a review of previously published literature• Received input from advisory board of physicians with social media
expertise • Received approval from the Western Institutional Review Board[1]
• Utilized the Technology Acceptance Model [2] (TAM) theoretical framework as a model
Survey distribution• Survey distributed via email to a random sample of practicing
oncologists and primary care physicians in the United States. • Survey data was collected during March of 2011 from a total of 186
U.S. oncologists and 299 U.S. primary care physicians (response rate ~ 30%)[1] Administrative Letter-Waiver of Documentation of Consent: Physician Survey #8702685.0 Protocol(-2-04-2011)
[2] Davis, F.D. (1989), “Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology”, MIS Quarterly 13(3): 319-340.
Study conducted between November 2010 and March 2011Study conducted between November 2010 and March 2011
Technology Acceptance Model (TAM)
External factors
External factors
Perceived UsefulnessPerceived Usefulness
Perceived Ease of UsePerceived
Ease of Use
AttitudeAttitudeBehavioral
Intention to use
Behavioral Intention to
use
Technology Use
Technology Use
Davis, F. D. (1989), "Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology", MIS Quarterly 13(3): 319–340
Study Definitions
Social media is defined as internet-based applications which allow for the creation and exchange of user-generated content and includes services such as social networking, professional online communities, wikis, blogs, and microblogging.
Social media is defined as internet-based applications which allow for the creation and exchange of user-generated content and includes services such as social networking, professional online communities, wikis, blogs, and microblogging.
Sharing medical knowledge refers to the exchange of information, advice, ideas, reports and scientific discoveries with other physicians in the medical community.
Sharing medical knowledge refers to the exchange of information, advice, ideas, reports and scientific discoveries with other physicians in the medical community.
Survey Sample DemographicsDemographic Characteristics Oncology
n = 186Primary Care
n = 299
Degree MD/DO 100% 100%
Years since graduation from medical schoolMean/St. dev. 24 years/10 24 years/9
Percent Male 75% 72%
Patients seen per weekMean/St.dev. 100 patients/56 124 patients/73
Practice Location UrbanSuburban
Rural
47%44%9%
23%60%17%
Practice Setting Solo Practice Group Practice Medical School
Non-Government Hospital
12%68%9%5%
34%60%1%3%
Major professional activity Direct patient care 97% 98%
Sharing Medical Knowledge
1=Not Aware 2= Will Never Use 3=Unlikely to Use within 3 Months 4=Not Sure 5= Likely to Use within 3 Months 6=Very Likely to Use within 3 Months 7=Current User
Email6.3
Podcasts3.9
Restricted Online Community (ie. SERMO)
5.6Facebook
3.8
Cell Phone Apps5.0
Blogs3.7
Texting4.9
LinkedIn3.4
Wikis4.4
Twitter3.3
iTunes4.3
RSS Feeds3.2
YouTube 4.1
How likely are you to use these social media applications to share medical knowledge with other physicians?How likely are you to use these social media applications to share medical knowledge with other physicians?
Sharing Medical Knowledge
Sharing Medical KnowledgeEveryone has
heard of Email
Sharing Medical Knowledge
High Unawareness
of LinkedIn and RSS feeds
Sharing Medical Knowledge
Never Use: TwitterFacebook
Adopters versus Adamant Non-Adopters% of Physicians
Media Usage by Years Since Med School
Age doesn’t matter when it comes to the more “social” applications!
Years since Med School N
1-9 1510-19 16120-29 16530-39 122
40 or more 23
Significant correlation1=Not Aware 2= Will Never Use 3=Unlikely to Use within 3 Months 4=Not Sure 5= Likely to Use within 3 Months 6=Very Likely to Use within 3 Months 7=Current User
Mean; Scale: 1-7
Media Usage by Size of PracticeThe size of the practice does matter when it comes to the more “social” applications!
Practice Size N0-49 21
50-99 149100-149 224150-199 49Over 200 43
Significant correlation1=Not Aware 2= Will Never Use 3=Unlikely to Use within 3 Months 4=Not Sure 5= Likely to Use within 3 Months 6=Very Likely to Use within 3 Months 7=Current User
Mean; Scale: 1-7
Media Usage by Gender
Gender not all that important
Gender NMale 356
Female 130
Significant correlation1=Not Aware 2= Will Never Use 3=Unlikely to Use within 3 Months 4=Not Sure 5= Likely to Use within 3 Months 6=Very Likely to Use within 3 Months 7=Current User
Mean; Scale: 1-7
Professional vs Personal Intentions to Adopt
1=Not Aware 2= Will Never Use 3=Unlikely to Use within 3 Months 4=Not Sure 5= Likely to Use within 3 Months 6=Very Likely to Use within 3 Months 7=Current User
Mean; Scale: 1-7
Significant mean difference
Intentions for Personal Usage higher: Physicians more likely to associate personal value with these applications
Users Only: Frequency of Prof vs Pers Use1=Rarely 2=Monthly 3=Once a week
4=3 times a week 5=Daily 6=Many times a day1=Rarely 2=Monthly 3=Once a week
4=3 times a week 5=Daily 6=Many times a day
Oncology versus Primary Care
Sharing Medical Knowledge: ONC vs PCPHow likely are you to use these social media applications to share medical knowledge with other physicians?How likely are you to use these social media applications to share medical knowledge with other physicians?
Significant mean difference1=Not Aware 2= Will Never Use 3=Unlikely to Use within 3 Months 4=Not Sure 5= Likely to Use within 3 Months 6=Very Likely to Use within 3 Months 7=Current User
Mean; Scale: 1-7
Adamant Non Adopters: ONCs vs PCPs% of Physicians
Oncologists more skeptical overall than PCPS
Current Users: ONCs vs PCPs% of Physicians
More oncologists are current users of more “traditional” applications and podcasting
Current Users: ONCs vs PCPs% of Physicians
More Primary Care Physicians are current users of more “social” applications
Current Users: ONCs vs PCPs% of Physicians
Twitter adoption rates not much lower than national averages
The “Meaningful Use” of Social Media by Physicians
Where Do We Go From Here?
Dr.’s Experience as Early Adopter
Robert S. Miller, MD, FACPClinical AssociateSidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns HopkinsOncology Medical Information OfficerJohns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Bryan Vartabedian, MD, FAAPAssistant Professor of Pediatrics Baylor College of Medicine
Where should the research agenda take us?
Final thoughts/conclusions