By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Scripps Jumps the Curve by Tapping into Social Media Networking for Nurses
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > eHealth > Social Media > Scripps Jumps the Curve by Tapping into Social Media Networking for Nurses
Social Media

Scripps Jumps the Curve by Tapping into Social Media Networking for Nurses

Barbara Ficarra
Barbara Ficarra
Share
6 Min Read
SHARE

You Can’t Ignore It…Social Media Networking Isn’t Going to Go Away…

Engaging in social media networking by health care professionals continues to cause hesitation.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding social media networking, nurses at Scripps Cancer Center in San Diego, CA embrace it.  They decided to educate themselves for a deeper understanding of this powerful form of real-time communication.

You Can’t Ignore It…Social Media Networking Isn’t Going to Go Away…

Engaging in social media networking by health care professionals continues to cause hesitation.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding social media networking, nurses at Scripps Cancer Center in San Diego, CA embrace it.  They decided to educate themselves for a deeper understanding of this powerful form of real-time communication.

More Read

Physician Ratings: One Orthopedic Doctor’s Experience
Should Hospital PR Engage Journalists with Social Media?
Zyrtec’s Healthcare Social Media Campaign
Discovering the Value of Twitter at HIMSS 2013
The Healthcare Social Media Landscape

They are proactive and they step outside the box to gain knowledge to help them navigate through the social media networking maze.

In a recent interview with Guy Kawasaki, New York Times Best-Selling author, co-founder Alltop.com, and former chief evangelist of Apple, Kawasaki talked about the value of companies jumping the curve to excel.  (Kawasaki’s latest book, Enchantment:  The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions.)

At the 31st Annual Scripps Oncology Nurses Symposium in San Diego, CA, Scripps Cancer Center stepped outside the oncology arena, jumped the curve and included “The Use of Social Media in Health Care,” in its conference curriculum amid topics surrounding the clinical aspects of cancer.

Course topics included, “Melanoma:  2011 and Beyond,” “Cancer and Fertility,” “Thoracic Oncology Tumor Board,” “Nutrition and Cancer: Myths, Controversies and Realities,” and “Compassion Fatigue: Healing the Healer,” to name a few, and “The Use of Social Media in Health Care.”

I had the pleasure of presenting this workshop at two different times, each one,   1 1/2 hours  in length to an audience of nurses and other health care professionals.

While social media networking is exploding, and curious nurses listened and participated in the presentation, it’s clear that hesitation remains paramount with health care professionals’ involvement in social media networking.

While nurses have a wealth of information to share, they are cautious to dive in. In fact, surprisingly, a few of the nurses fearlessly trumpeted that they aren’t familiar with a blog and that they don’t know the difference between twitter and a tweet.

Cathleen Sugarman, RN, MSN, AOCNS, Oncology Advance Practice Nurse at Scripps Memorial Hospital and Cancer Center and conference director, said it’s important to include a workshop on social media networking because it’s an area that nurses don’t know too much about.  “While social media networking can be a big problem,” it “enhances communication between patients and health care providers,” she said.

How many nurses will jump the curve and involve themselves with social media networking?  That’s unknown, but one thing is for sure, social media networking isn’t going to go away.  It’s only going to get faster and fiercer.

While hesitation remains, the 31st annual oncology nurses symposium included a critical topic for nurses and other health care professionals that is changing the landscape of health care.

Social media networking may be polarizing to some, but that shouldn’t stop them from learning more about it and taking the first steps to become active in a spectacular platform to help engage patients and health consumers.  Social media networking also allows colleagues to engage and collaborate with each.

If you are a health care professional or health care organization entertaining the idea of social media networking, here is a list of 20 excellent resources to help guide you.

Go beyond the status quo, jump the curve, don’t resist change, but embrace it.

Your turn

Are you a health care professional who embraces social media networking?  Did you dive in or proceed with caution?  What tips do you have to help other health care professionals and organizations get started.  Are you a health care consumer who values insights from health care professionals?

As always, thank you for your time.

Follow Barbara on Twitter @BarbaraFicarra

Visit Barbara on Facebook

Like Healthin30

Connect with Barbara on Linkedin

More on Social Media Networking from Healthin30

Social Media/Networking

List of 20 Excellent Social Media Networking Resources

3 Reasons Why Social Networking Is Not a Waste of Time for Health Professionals

Social Media: Medical Social Networking – Part 2

A Brilliant Reason to Dive Deep into the Social Media Health Space

What are the Legal Implications for Doctors, Nurses and Hospitals Engaging in Social Media?

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

contamination
Batch Failures And The Hidden Costs Of Contamination
Health Infographics
October 21, 2025
Medication Management For Seniors
Simplifying Medication Management For Seniors
Infographics Senior Care
October 21, 2025
Guide To Pursuing a Career in Nursing as a Foreigner in the USA
Collaboration Is the Prescription for Better Patient Care
Health
October 20, 2025
Epidemiological Health Benefits
Personal and Epidemiological Health Benefits of Blood Pressure Management
Health
October 13, 2025

You Might also Like

Social Media

Social Media in Health Care: It’s Happening … It Works … It’s the *Message*

June 6, 2011

Physician Social Media Networking Expands

May 19, 2011

4 Social Media Categories Hospitals Should Measure – and What Metrics to Use

August 9, 2012
Image
Social Media

iMedicine: The Influence of Social Media on Medicine

April 26, 2012
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?