Los Angeles, Calif. From the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, University of California, Los Angeles.
Plast Reconstr Surg. 2013 May;131(5):1184-1193. doi: 10.1097/PRS.0b013e318287a072.
Social media platforms have revolutionized the way human beings communicate, yet there is little evidence describing how the plastic surgery community has adopted social media. In this article, the authors evaluate current trends in social media use by practicing plastic surgeons.
An anonymous survey on the use of social media was distributed to members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. Prevalent patterns of social media implementation were elucidated.
One-half of respondents were regular social media users. Reasons for using social media included the beliefs that incorporation of social media into medical practice is inevitable (56.7 percent), that they are an effective marketing tool (52.1 percent), and that they provide a forum for patient education (49 percent). Surgeons with a primarily aesthetic surgery practice were more likely to use social media. Most respondents (64.6 percent) stated that social media had no effect on their practice, whereas 33.8 percent reported a positive impact and 1.5 percent reported a negative impact.
This study depicts current patterns of social media use by plastic surgeons, including motivations driving its implementation and impressions on its impact. Many feel that social media are an effective marketing tool that generates increased exposure and referrals. A small number of surgeons have experienced negative repercussions from social media involvement. Our study reveals the presence of a void. There is a definite interest among those surveyed in developing best practice standards and oversight to ensure ethical use of social media platforms throughout the plastic surgery community. Continuing discussion regarding these matters should be ongoing as our experience with social media in plastic surgery evolves.
社交媒体平台彻底改变了人类交流的方式，但几乎没有证据描述整形外科学界如何采用社交媒体。本文作者评估了执业整形医生使用社交媒体的当前趋势。
向美国整形外科学会成员分发了一份关于使用社交媒体的匿名调查。阐述了社交媒体实施的普遍模式。
一半的受访者是社交媒体的常客。使用社交媒体的原因包括他们相信将社交媒体融入医疗实践是不可避免的（56.7%）、它是一种有效的营销工具（52.1%）以及它为患者教育提供了一个论坛（49%）。以美容手术为主的外科医生更有可能使用社交媒体。大多数受访者（64.6%）表示社交媒体对他们的实践没有影响，而 33.8%的人表示有积极影响，1.5%的人表示有负面影响。
本研究描绘了整形医生使用社交媒体的当前模式，包括推动其实施的动机及其对影响的印象。许多人认为社交媒体是一种有效的营销工具，可以增加曝光率和转介量。少数外科医生因社交媒体的参与而遭受了负面后果。我们的研究揭示了一个空白。被调查者中明确有兴趣制定最佳实践标准和监督，以确保整个整形外科学界对社交媒体平台的道德使用。随着我们在整形外科学中使用社交媒体经验的发展，应该持续进行关于这些问题的讨论。
