Legal Ethics of E-Mail and Social Media and Its Applicability to the Healthcare Industry
Consequences of Social Media
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Perils of Building an Online Network
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Caution with Employee Email Accounts
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Issues when Endorsing other Companies
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Benefits of Social Media
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Legal Ethics of E-mail and Social Media and its Applicability to the Healthcare Industry
Social media has without a doubt changed the way we live, the way we view the world and the way we interact with one another. This paper acknowledges the undeniable good that social media has given us, while identifying the many ways that it has created issues and intricacies for the healthcare industry at large. This paper discusses the benefits of social media for healthcare professionals, while identifying some of the dire consequences, the perils of an online network, the issues connected to an employee email account and the caution one must take when it comes to endorsing products. Finally this paper concludes with a discussion of the benefits of social media to health care professionals.
The benefits of social media, e-mail and all forms of electronic communication are apparent in the world today. There's an ability to make friends from all over the world, to reconnect with old friends and to otherwise share one's life over the Internet. It allows for the creation of an online community and easier ways to stay in touch. However, in the world of professional healthcare, privacy and confidentiality aren't just an expected part of the overall professionalism; there are very real and very immediate legal obligations that are directly connected to protecting patient privacy. Thus, there needs to be a more aggravated responsibility towards protecting patient privacy when it comes to social media and the Internet. "Surveys show that 35% of American adults have a profile on a social networking site. Seventy-five percent of Facebook users admit to checking their Facebook at work, on company time and company-owned equipment. In 2004, more than 10% of employees spent more than half of the day on email (86% of which is personal), and more than one in five employers (21%) had employee email and instant messages subpoenaed in the course of a lawsuit or regulatory investigation" (osma.org). These numbers demonstrate just how widespread the use of social media and the Internet truly are when it comes to the healthcare industry and how this creates the potential for sticky legal issues and a compromising of legal data. However, the issue becomes even more complicated as more and more healthcare industries are relying on social media as a means of promoting themselves and reaching out to new clients and existing patients. However, with this increased usage comes even more heightened ethical concerns that warrant attention.
Pay Attention to Consequences
The only "right" involved when healthcare professionals post something on social media or on a social forum is the right they have to write or to exercise their freedom of speech. There are still formidable amounts of consequences which go along with this right and they must be faced by the healthcare professional. For example, if a doctor wants to share a meaningful discovery about a patient that she recently had and feels that the information could assist and enlighten other doctors, this is indeed worthwhile information to share. However, there's still a need to protect patient privacy. For example, the information posted needs to be so generic that there would be no way possible to identify a given patient. Even so, one still has the obligation to be mindful of the laws which govern patients and the healthcare arena.
For example, consider Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 this was something which truly altered the American landscape, because it not only disallowed racial discrimination in the job market, but racial and sex discrimination were outlawed as well (CAP, 2004). This means that when it comes to the professional arena, there's really no room for any remark or post on social media or any other form of electronic communication which indicates an element of discriminatory practice. "The Act indelibly changed life in America. 'Whites only' water fountains, pools and restaurants became illegal, and 'no blacks need apply' job announcements became a violation of federal law. Title VI provided a major tool in the desegregation of hospitals, nursing homes,...
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