¶ … social media and smartphones in the area of healthcare, and how legal and ethical principles are to be applied to ensure their proper use in healthcare as pertains to personal technology. The field of healthcare is eagerly embracing all technology that is capable of improving patient outcomes, lowering expenses, and streamlining operations; however, healthcare professionals need to pause and consider the negative effect of technology on patient care and privacyTechnology implies to not only gadgets, but also social media apps (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and MySpace) used on smartphones. Healthcare workers are increasingly employing the use of smartphones today, for communication, care and efficiency. Clearly, before doing so, they need to take into consideration various issues (legal, ethical, and professional) from personal as well as hospital perspectives.

Scenario of Case

I am employed as an emergency room nurse at a hospital. One of my Friday evening shifts (7 p.m.-7 a.m.), which was filled, as is typical, with crying babies, drunken belligerent teenagers, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) exacerbations, fractures, falls, and the predictable and regular patients suffering CHF (congestive heart failure), made me miss out on a concert I desperately wanted to attend. My best friend, who was at the concert, was constantly texting me and I responded to her in between caring for patientsI was jealous of her being lucky to attend, while I was stuck at work. I thought to myself, "What a jerk she's being to torture me this way!" At about 2 a.m. in the morning, I was radioed by medics and notified of the arrival, in approximately 5 minutes, of an emergency accident victim. I sighed, used the restroom, and proceeded to set up this patient's room, forgoing a much-needed mug of coffee. The medics pulled up at the hospital and filled me in on the situation- the victim was a male, aged 28, commuting on a bus that crashed, rolled over the embankment, and overturned. They stated that a number of passengers lost their lives, while this patient remained unconscious. They started giving me an account of the state of his vitals, but my attention was drawn to the patient's face, and I did a double take. I was shocked to see that he was Jerod -- lead singer of one of my favorite bands "Blue Lizards" -- whom I have idolized ever since I heard his songs, and whose concert I had grudgingly missed. Clearly, the concert was just over and the band was being transported to their place of stay when the mishap occurred. I quickly texted my best friend; she was skeptical at first, and asked me to prove it. Without thinking, I snapped a picture of his with my smartphone when nobody else was around, and forwarded it to her. I didn't think my actions would lead to any untoward consequences; I reasoned that celebs were "public property;" having their pictures taken was part and parcel of their lives. I didn't stop at one photo, though; I snapped a number of pictures of him unconscious, in different stages of undress, followed by a snap of demographic data, home address, and telephone number, from his EHR (electronic health record). I sat my cellphone down on his bedside table, before continuing my assessment of his condition. The very next morning, a colleague texted me to convey the information that a huge investigation was underway at the hospital, on account of a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) violation, involving a celeb who was admitted hereApparently, the Gossip Gazette had got a hold of some of his photographs, and therefore, a lawsuit was filed against my place of work. Seeing that I had sent only one photo, to none other than my best friend, whom I could trust to keep the matter confidential, I reached for my phone. It was only then that I realized it was missing.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Smartphones and Social Media in Healthcare

Smartphone and social media use in healthcare is not without its advantages. Patients rely on social media for directly reporting data (e.g., blood glucose and blood pressure readings) to doctors from their self-controlled, home-based monitoring devices, or for documenting or reporting on medicine use. Additionally, patients send data from their PHRs (personal health records) to their physicians (Social Media, Healthcare & Health Centers -- RCHN CHF, n.d). It was discovered by a California HealthCare Foundation study conducted in 2010, which surveyed over 1800 adults, that only seven percent of participants made use of a PHR. Further, PHR use is mostly concentrated in West California. However, an increasing number of patients are turning to PHR use; of the survey participants without a PHR, forty percent expressed their desire to use one. Another important point to take into account is that, 58% of these individuals interested in using PHR preferred using one from a provider/hospital, while half claimed they...

Therefore, although PHRs are yet to be widely employed, their growing acceptance indicates uses that incorporate social media, which were earlier not feasible, or even considered. Another population that uses technology and social media is healthcare providers including doctors. Providers rely on social media for connecting with patients, providing specific information connected with patients' care plan or condition, and obtaining patient-reported data, in some instances (Social Media, Healthcare & Health Centers, n.d). Professionals also connect with peers for referrals, consultation, and smoother transitions. PricewaterhouseCoopers cites a Manhattan Research finding that indicates that 60% of American doctors are already using or, show interest in making use of, Sermo and other Internet-based physician communities, for collaboration and information-sharing. A number of healthcare institutions and providers are now informally using general sites like Twitter and YouTube for facilitating communication amongst and between providers.
One of Permanente Foundation's Medical Directors, Dr. Ted Eytan, writes that utilization of all of the numerous social media forms in the healthcare field will enhance provider-provider and patient-provider communication quality as well as quantity, and this, in turn, can aid with care quality and innovation pace improvements (Social Media, Healthcare & Health Centers, n.d). But technology has its disadvantages, too. Concerns raised with regard to mobile devices include: patient data protection/privacy; mobile devices' reliability in clinical decision-making; effect on patient-clinician relationship; and effective integration into healthcare organizations. Moreover, healthcare providers have voiced concerns regarding lack of content accuracy and standards oversight, particularly in case of patient management apps (Ventola, 2014). Healthcare providers that do not prefer novel technology use or feel intimidated by them (e.g., older providers) might be at a disadvantage in the event mobile device usage becomes obligatory in healthcare. Social media use or enthusiasm for its incorporation in healthcare may be restricted by certain barriers, including: lack of technological know-how; time; fear; cost; rapid technology change; students'/faculty unwillingness to use social networking; outside distractions and multiple demands; ostracism/reprimand for social media misuse or mistakes on social media sites; and restrictive healthcare organization policies (Schmitt, et.al, 2003).

Legal and ethical Issues

(The very next morning, a colleague texted me to convey the information that a huge investigation was underway at the hospital, on account of a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) violation, involving a celeb who was admitted hereApparently, the Gossip Gazette had got a hold of some of his photographs, and therefore, a lawsuit was filed against my place of work. Seeing that I had sent only one photo, to none other than my best friend, whom I could trust to keep the matter confidential, I reached for my phone. It was only then that I realized it was missing.)

Through this entire case scenario, I have reached the following conclusions and reflections about the legal and ethical issues in this case:

Though technology (e.g. smartphones, other mobile devices and social media) is a valuable tool in the healthcare arena, it also presents a range of ethical problems, of which the most critical in this case is patient privacy (Writer Thoughts). In my case, my organization and I are in legal trouble, because of the celebrity's photos that got out. The consequence of my actions reflects to the following recaps and findings discussed in the section below.

Conclusion/Recommendations

Increased technology use by healthcare providers at the workplace and in their everyday personal lives has raised critical ethical and medico-legal implications. Consequently, it is necessary to establish policies and standards in healthcare organizations for ensuring transparent, ethical conduct (Ventola, 2014). An examination of medical apps' and mobile devices' impacts on clinical training/education has been demanded as well. Adopting these recommendations will prove to be greatly beneficial in guiding healthcare educators, clinicians, research scholars, and administrators in ascertaining how best they can integrate increasingly advanced technological tools with clinical practice. Furthermore, best clinical practice standards need to be established for medical application developers. Such standards will serve to raise entry barriers into the market for medical apps, whilst enhancing app quality and reducing the staggering number of currently available medical apps.

Evaluation of smartphone medical apps claiming therapeutic or diagnostic efficiency in terms of clinical practice utility and…