Social media for your practice – to be avoided or embraced?

Catherine Lawler, social media manager at the PMA, shares her top tips for using social media to benefit your practice 

Change is the only constant in life – so says Greek philosopher Heraclitus. For example, look at how communication between GP practices and patients has changed over the last decade. Letters, whilst still a ‘thing’, are being replaced with text messages, emails or even WhatsApp! You can check in for your appointment using a touchscreen and bulky filing systems are becoming computerised. 

Whilst some of the popular press many focus on the negatives of telephone and video consultations with healthcare professionals, there has been huge amount of positive feedback. Social media, however, can be a minefield. 

Most of us have a personal account that we use daily, but the prospect of setting up and managing social media for our practice can be overwhelming, as well as time-consuming. However, there’s no doubt that it can be effective – and even a force for good; many of us may turn to community Facebook pages to find out what is going on locally or stay in touch with old friends and relatives. 

Social platforms can be used to raise money for good causes and, whilst leaflets and noticeboards have their place, it’s more likely that information about a clinic for new of expectant mums, for example, will reach the people it needs to more quickly on Facebook and Instagram.

An active Facebook page or Twitter account can reduce the time spent on ‘phone calls seeking simple information and can increase awareness of specialist clinics or medical conditions; it is also a good way to alleviate the effects of worrying headlines in newspapers or on TV and, as COVID gathered pace, social media was a great way of communicating facts to people. A reputable page can offer advice and reassurance without blocking ‘phone lines or having large numbers of people visit the surgery.

Many practice staff I’ve spoken to are reluctant to take on social media for fear of opening that well known ‘can of worms’ – after all, they deal with enough complaints in person and over the ‘phone without adding another platform into the mix – but the key to running a successful social media account is to start as you mean to go on – with a professional strategy and firm policy in place. 

Negative comments from patients can be frustrating but they are actually few and far between. Never get into a discussion or respond to patients angrily online, even if they’re in the wrong, as this could escalate the situation and possibly breach patient confidentiality.

Armchair complainers tend to disappear if they are not engaged with and other people will often jump to your defence if someone is being unreasonable. 

As with most things, the good generally outweighs the bad, so while it’s tempting to avoid Facebook or Twitter for your practice, I recommend embracing it because social media is going nowhere!

Top tips for using social media in GP practices

• have a social media policy in place from the start;
• set up appropriate privacy settings;
• make it clear that patients cannot make/cancel appointments or expect a diagnosis via social media;
• pick a social media platform that suits your practice best;
• only be active during practice hours, and clarify this on your page; commit to it – it takes time for people to engage, so be consistent;
• don’t engage with ‘trolls’ and users posting inappropriate comments (offenders can be blocked from your page and comments hidden if you think it necessary).

Social media can be great for communicating information to your patients and community, such as issues with ‘phone lines, booking systems, opening hours or new staff joining the practice. Think of your social media accounts as an extension of the other channels you use to communicate with your patients, such as mail-outs or ‘phone calls, and use it accordingly.

If you want to gain the knowledge and skills required to confidently manage your practice’s social media PMA will be holding a social media workshop on April 18^th the details are here: https://pma-uk.org/workshops/social-media-virtual-workshop/

If you would prefer to have your social media managed and monitored by the professionals at PMA, have a look at PMA Digital’s managed social media service here: https://pma-uk.org/pma-digital/