Healthcare is a heavy regulated industry so many healthcare organizations avoid the use of social media. But patients, healthcare professionals and hospitals don’t.
Consumers use social media to research and to make health decisions. Patients consider themselves part of a tribe trusting others on social media more than other sources. Physicians use social media to network professionally with colleagues and peers and participate in forums, sharing medical knowledge within their community.
Social media is a platform where the public, patients and healthcare professionals can communicate about health issues and possibly improve health outcomes.
Here are 27 surprising stats how social media is changing healthcare.
- 90% of Millennials say they would trust medical information shared by others on their social media networks (source: Search Engine Watch)
- 81% of hospitals said service lines expressed an interest in participating in the hospital’s social media strategy (source: AFIA)
- 66% of doctors use social media for professional purposes, often preferring an open forum as opposed to a physician-only online community (source: EMR Thoughts)
- 60% of doctors say social media improves the quality of care delivered to patients (source: Demi & Cooper Advertising and DC Interactive Group)
- 60% of consumers say they trust doctors’ posts versus 36% who trust posts from a pharma firm (source: MDDI)
- 60% of physicians most popular activities on social are following what colleagues are sharing and discussing (source: Health Care Communication)
- 54% of patients are very comfortable with their providers seeking advice from online communities to better treat their conditions (source: Mediabistro)
- 50% of healthcare apps available to consumers can be downloaded for free and are produced by a variety of types of developer (source: IMS Institute)
- 49% of those polled expect to hear from their doctor when requesting an appointment or follow-up discussion via social media within a few hours. (source: HealthCare Finance News)
- 41% of people said social media would affect their choice of a specific doctor, hospital, or medical facility (source: Demi & Cooper Advertising and DC Interactive Group)
- 40% of people polled said information found on social media affects how someone coped with a chronic condition, their view of diet and exercise and their selection of a physician (source: HealthCare Finance News)
- 40% of consumers say that information found via social media affects the way they deal with their health.(source: Mediabistro)
- 31% of health care professionals use social media for professional networking (source: Mediabistro)
- 31% of health care organizations have specific social media guidelines in writing (source: Institute for Health)
- 30% of adults are likely to share information about their health on social media sites with other patients, 47% with doctors, 43% with hospitals, 38% with a health insurance company and 32% with a drug company. (source: Fluency Media)
- 28% of health-related conversations on Facebook are supporting health-related causes, followed by 27% of people commenting about health experiences or updates (source: Infographics Archive)
- 27% of patients comment or post status updates based on health-related experiences (source: MDDI)
- 26% of all hospitals in the US participate in social media (source: Demi & Cooper Advertising and DC Interactive Group)
- 23% of drug companies have not addressed security and privacy in terms of social media (source: Mediabistro)
- 19% of smartphone owners have at least one health app on their phone. Exercise, diet, and weight apps are the most popular types (source: Demi & Cooper Advertising and DC Interactive Group)
- 12% of apps accounted for 90% of all downloads (source: iMedicalApps)
- 18 to 24 year olds are more than 2x as likely than 45 to 54 year olds to use social media for health-related discussions (source: Mediabistro)
- YouTube traffic to hospital sites has increased 119% year-over-year (source: Google’s Think Insights)
- The Mayo Clinic’s podcast listeners rose by 76,000 after the clinic started using social media (source: Infographics Archive)
- Among the 165,000 health & medical apps now on the market, nearly two thirds are focused on general wellness issues like fitness, lifestyle & stress, and diet. The remainder is made up by apps focused on specific health conditions (9%), medication info & reminders (6%), and women’s health & pregnancy (7%). Mental health apps led among disease specific apps, followed by diabetes (source: iMedicalApps)
- $392,000,000 is the revenue from mobile healthcare apps in 2015 (source: Northern Kentucky University)
- Of more than 1,500 hospitals nationwide who have an online presence, Facebook is most popular (source: WHPRMS)
Below are three infographics that also deliver statistics on the impact social media is having on healthcare.
Do these facts align with your healthcare behaviors. Do you believe social media is changing healthcare?
