Should Physicians be Utilizing Facebook?

At Quaintise, we understand that as social media tools become ubiquitous with healthcare marketing and advertising, fears will increase as to their true purpose and possibilities. These tools (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc) are synonymous with big brands such Coca Cola, Starbucks, Ford, Red Bull and even Disney, but are also making waves for medical organizations such as Cleveland Clinic and WebMD. And as social media tools have become a pivotal piece of the entire healthcare marketing puzzle, it’s our job at Quaintise to quell any fears that our physicians and specialists might have.

Personal vs Professional Page

An aspect of social media that many physicians and specialists often overlook is the line between professional and personal. While Facebook does have guidelines for setting up multiple accounts under the same name, it does allow you to set up a professional presence as well as a personal one. Our healthcare marketing experts do not touch your personal profile and highly suggest that you do not respond to personal friend requests from patients or personal messages. All questions, concerns and friend requests need to be dealt with on a professional level, directly from your professional page.

This is where things can get dicey, and the line between patient and friend can easily get crossed. It’s in this grey area that HIPAA guidelines can easily be forfeited, penalties accrued, and patient privacy put at risk.

If you have a personal Facebook page, all Privacy settings should be set to Friends Only. IN reality, there should be no way for anyone on Facebook to run a search for you as a physician and find you. Many physicians under Quaintise use a nickname or shortened spelling of their names to avoid this issue and confusion with their professional Facebook accounts.

Physician vs Office Page

A decision that every physician needs to make is whether to create social media accounts for each physician on staff at a professional level, or whether to create one office page where everyone has access. At Quaintise, it is our suggestion that physicians create one office page to be maintained and managed by healthcare marketing experts who can engage patients and Fans, as well as relay any questions, concerns and advice between office staff, physicians and Facebook Fans.

One of the pertinent reasons we advise this strategy is so that all HIPAA guidelines are followed at all times, no patient privacy is put at risk, and Fans receive the highest engagement levels possible while adhering to all privacy rules and guidelines.

Facebook Increases Patient Engagement

There is no question that Facebook increases patient engagement, making them more aware of lifestyle choices and healthy options. For example, during flu season Quaintise ran many posts, blogs, and informational discussions regarding flu symptoms and flu vaccines. Within one month of increased Facebook engagement on a subject that was relevant to every patient and non-patient of Family Practice Physicians (client), we were able to increase web traffic via Facebook referrals by 146%, and overall web traffic by 48.39%.

Quaintise brand marketing professionals can deliver these results to your practice through Facebook engagement as well. Give us a call today to find out more!

Quaintise, LLC

From print advertising to medical marketing on Facebook, the professional team at Quaintise can handle all of your marketing and advertising needs. Visit us at our Scottsdale, Arizona offices or our Los Angeles offices.