Social media use, attitudes, behaviours and perceptions of online professionalism amongst dental students

Abstract

Use of social media has increased amongst health professionals. This has benefits for patient care but also introduces risks for confidentiality and professional fitness to practise. This study aimed to examine dental student attitudes towards professional behaviour on social media. The secondary aim was to establish the extent and nature of social media use and exposure to potentially unprofessional behaviours. A cross-sectional study was carried out in one dental school. Data were collected using questionnaires to examine social media use, perceptions and attitudes towards social media and professional behaviours online. Students who responded (N = 155) all used social media at least once per week; most used more than one platform. Students were aware of the relationship between social media use and professional practice. Posting drunken photographs and interacting with staff and patients online were widely considered as unprofessional. Security settings affected behaviour and most had seen inappropriate behaviours online. The study found that students use social media extensively.. Students are aware of the risks but there is a greater sense of safety in closed groups and many students are exposed to potentially inappropriate content online. This suggests that training should be implemented to help students manage these risks.

Preserving Professional Identities, Behaviors, and Values in Digital Professionalism: A Scoping Review

“…Fraping, deliberate posting of inappropriate material on Facebook, after hacking into someone else's account is a new emerging cyber-crime (7). This bring up another aspect of security of cyber networking that can safe-guard public's privacy and self-esteem (24). A study has shown extremely poor awareness about privacy regulations of social media among surgical trainees and established surgeons (27).…”

“…1. Usage of social media by healthcare professionals and students (1,7, By and large, the usage of social media by health professionals has escalated during the last decade (1,7,, there is a negative impact of social media usage on medical professionalism as re ected by erosion of professional integrity (11,17,21,(25)(26)(27)(37)(38)(39)(40)(41), an upsurge of awareness about professional identity but rise in unprofessional behaviors in the digital era (7,11,13,18,21,24,27,39,40,43,44) and some evidence of enhanced acquisition of knowledge about digital professionalism by incorporating structured modules in curricula (3,11,19,21,24,26,34,40,41,46,47).…”

Dentistry and the social media

“…These instances addressed intensity of pain, actions taken and the cause and effect relationship. Given the rich source of information available on social media, some studies explored the perspectives of on the management of dental fear and anxiety in pediatric patients [21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30] .…”

Social media and professionalism: a retrospective content analysis of Fitness to Practise cases heard by the GDC concerning social media complaints

“…, 5,6,7 Others consider social media, especially Facebook and twitter, as a tool for professional development, as a means of accessing information, marketing practices and services, job opportunities, as well as sharing or adding your opinion on issues of interest to you and to other like-minded individuals online. 8,9, However, other social media research has been conducted that has implications for the profession and the patient -practitioner relationship.…”