Acosta Joseph Macadaeg, Detsomboonrat Palinee, Pisarnturakit Pagaporn Pantuwadee, Urwannachotima Nipaporn
International Graduate Program in Dental Public Health, Department of Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
School of Dentistry, University of Baguio, Baguio City, Philippines.
JMIR Form Res. 2025 Jan 3;9:e66121. doi: 10.2196/66121.
As digitalization continues to advance globally, the health care sector, including dental practice, increasingly recognizes social media as a vital tool for health care promotion, patient recruitment, marketing, and communication strategies.
This study aimed to investigate the use of social media and assess its impact on enhancing dental care and practice among dental professionals in the Philippines.
A cross-sectional survey was conducted among dental practitioners in the Philippines. The study used a 23-item questionnaire, which included 5 questions on dentists' background and demographic information and 18 questions regarding the use, frequency, and purpose of social media in patient advising and quality of care improvement. Data were analyzed using SPSS software, with frequency distributions and χ2 tests used to assess the association between social media use and demographic variables and the impact on dental practice.
The 265 dental practitioners in this study were predominantly female (n=204, 77%) and aged between 20-30 years (n=145, 54.7%). Most of the participants were general practitioners (n=260, 98.1%) working in a private practice (n=240, 90.6%), with 58.5% (n=155) having 0-5 years of clinical experience. Social media use was significantly higher among younger practitioners (20-30 years old) compared to older age groups (P<.001), though factors such as sex, dental specialty, and years of clinical practice did not significantly influence use. The majority (n=179, 67.5%) reported using social media in their practice, primarily for oral health promotion and education (n=191, 72.1%), connecting with patients and colleagues (n=165, 62.3%), and marketing (n=150, 56.6%). Facebook (n=179, 67.5%) and YouTube (n=163, 61.5%) were the most frequented platforms for clinical information, with Twitter (subsequently rebranded X) being the least used (n=4, 1.5%). Despite widespread social media engagement, only 8.7% (n=23) trusted the credibility of web-based information, and 63.4% (n=168) perceived a potential impact on the patient-dentist relationship due to patients seeking information on the internet. Social media was also perceived to enhance practice quality, with users reporting significant improvements in patient care (P=.001).
The findings highlight that social media is widely used among younger dental practitioners, primarily for education, communication, and marketing purposes. While social media use is associated with perceived improvements in practice quality and patient care, trust in information on social media remains low, and concerns remain regarding its effect on patient relationships. It is recommended to establish enhanced guidelines and provide reliable web-based resources to help dental practitioners use social media effectively and responsibly.
随着数字化在全球范围内持续推进，包括牙科实践在内的医疗保健行业越来越认识到社交媒体是促进医疗保健、招募患者、营销及沟通策略的重要工具。
本研究旨在调查菲律宾牙科专业人员对社交媒体的使用情况，并评估其对改善牙科护理及实践的影响。
对菲律宾的牙科从业者进行了一项横断面调查。该研究使用了一份包含23个条目的问卷，其中包括5个关于牙医背景和人口统计学信息的问题，以及18个关于社交媒体在患者咨询和改善护理质量方面的使用、频率和目的的问题。使用SPSS软件对数据进行分析，采用频率分布和卡方检验来评估社交媒体使用与人口统计学变量之间的关联以及对牙科实践的影响。
本研究中的265名牙科从业者以女性为主（n = 204，77%），年龄在20 - 30岁之间（n = 145，54.7%）。大多数参与者是全科医生（n = 260，98.1%），在私人诊所工作（n = 240，90.6%），58.5%（n = 155）有0 - 5年的临床经验。与年龄较大的群体相比，年轻从业者（20 - 30岁）中社交媒体的使用显著更高（P <.001），不过性别、牙科专业和临床实践年限等因素对使用情况没有显著影响。大多数（n = 179，67.5%）报告在其实践中使用社交媒体，主要用于口腔健康促进和教育（n = 191，72.1%）、与患者和同事建立联系（n = 165，62.3%）以及营销（n = 150，56.6%）。Facebook（n = 179，67.5%）和YouTube（n = 163，61.5%）是获取临床信息最常使用的平台，而Twitter（后更名为X）使用最少（n = 4，1.5%）。尽管社交媒体参与广泛，但只有8.7%（n = 23）信任基于网络的信息的可信度，63.4%（n = 168）认为由于患者在互联网上寻求信息，可能会对医患关系产生影响。社交媒体也被认为能提高实践质量，用户报告患者护理有显著改善（P =.001）。
研究结果表明，社交媒体在年轻牙科从业者中广泛使用，主要用于教育、沟通和营销目的。虽然社交媒体的使用与实践质量和患者护理的感知改善相关，但对社交媒体信息的信任度仍然较低，并且对其对患者关系的影响仍存在担忧。建议制定更完善的指南并提供可靠的网络资源，以帮助牙科从业者有效且负责任地使用社交媒体。
