AMA Guide to Social Media

The tips and traps every doctor and medical student should know

The use of social media by the medical profession is common and growing.

It has changed the way we can communicate with each other and the wider community.

We can now share information, create content, have meaningful social interactions, and collaborate in real-time for professional and personal benefits.

However, social media has the potential to blur the boundaries between private and professional.

There can be immense professional benefits by having an active presence through the proper use of social media, but inappropriate online behaviour has the potential to undermine professional integrity, doctor-patient and doctor-colleague relationships, future employment opportunities, and public trust and confidence in the medical profession.

As doctors and medical students, our professional standards remain the same whether communicating through social or traditional media, and social media can raise some ethical dilemmas that you might not have thought about as part of your everyday use.

The revised A guide to social media and medical professionalism will help ensure you can enjoy using social media while maintaining the standards of ethical and professional conduct expected of doctors by the profession and wider community.

This guide has been reviewed and endorsed by the Australian Medical Association (AMA) and its Council of Doctors in Training (AMACDT), the New Zealand Medical Association (NZMA), the New Zealand Medical Students’ Association (NZMSA), and the Australian Medical Students’ Association (AMSA) with input from the Avant and MDA National.