This essay examines the growing influence of social media on the nursing profession and nursing education. Drawing on peer-reviewed literature, the paper defines social media in a nursing context and explores how platforms such as Twitter have been applied as teaching tools in clinical curricula. The essay argues that social media, when treated as an intentional educational tool rather than an end in itself, can strengthen communication, professionalism, and critical thinking among nursing students. It also outlines institutional strategies — including segmented policies for personal and professional use — to maximize benefits while limiting potential misuse or distraction.
As technological advances in the medical profession have proven to yield great benefit, this trend has also been observed in society at large. The degree to which humans are able to incorporate technology largely dictates success or failure in many areas of modern life. Social media is a manifestation of technological advancement that, as a trend in the general public, has also profoundly affected the nursing profession and nursing education.
The purpose of this essay is to relate the trend of social media to the current state of nursing and patient education. As with any tool or piece of technology, the application of social media can be of great benefit if properly applied. This essay explains how to best leverage social media for its worth while minimizing the negative impacts of its potential abuse or misuse, and suggests practical strategies that may guide this effort.
Through any casual observation of contemporary society, the use of cell phone technology and internet-based communication has fully permeated daily life. Phones and computing devices are everywhere, serving both as benefactors and distractors. Social media, as a means of communicating ideas and knowledge through this technology, has evolved into a popular and accessible method of learning and expressing ideas and emotions. Its influence has extended into formal education, including medical and nursing curricula.
It is helpful to first define social media in order to determine its relationship to the professional standards and competencies it affects. These competencies include facilitating learning, functioning as a change agent and leader, and the ability to operate effectively within the educational environment. Schmitt et al. (2012) defined social media as "a platform that can assist nursing faculty to help students gain greater understanding of communication, professionalism, healthcare policy, and ethics. The key purpose of social media is engagement of others through electronic means, most often supported through internet sites or software. These are called social networking sites and involve people who 'follow' or are 'friends' with each other, meaning that people linked to a person can see his or her information and updates."
The very essence of learning is the ability to communicate abstract ideas to others. Learning, however, is also an individual process that requires self-awareness and determination. Social media supports this process by allowing quick feedback from significantly large pools of human information and experience. The validity of data acquired from social media presents its own challenges, and the need for intellectual discernment becomes obvious amid the complexity of cyberspace and the internet. Balancing ethical purpose with the application of technology remains a challenge for nursing education.
When applying strategic ideas to education, it is essential to understand that technology and social media are merely tools for accomplishing learning — not ends in themselves. Social media is powerful, and a respect for its capabilities is a prerequisite for creating any approach to managing and implementing this tool in a formal educational setting. Strategic goals and objectives must align with the ethics and values of the leadership within the organization or institution. Any mishandling of social media technology has the power to backfire and promote the opposite of its intended purpose.
Leveraging social media for its beneficial qualities has been empirically tested in recent years as its widespread use in society became evident and measurable. Identifying the proper application of social media is critical, and one strategy for managing this challenge is to segment its use according to specific areas of the educational institution. Skiba (2011) supported this view when her research revealed that "being proactive means you can focus on the benefits of social media and how they can be used properly without being reactive and exclusionary or restrictive. Boudreaux also recommends developing two policies — one for the personal use of individuals and one for those using social media as part of their work, such as student advising, teaching with social media, or recruitment."
The general approach described above is practical; however, more specific tactics can also be applied within nursing education processes. Twitter provides one well-documented example of social media used as a teaching tool. Lopez (2014) noted this application: "An example is using Twitter as a teaching tool for students in a Critical Care Course at the University of Glamorgan, UK. At the end of the course, it was found that scaffolding of learning from simple to complex scenarios supported students' critical reflection and clinical decision making using Twitter as a learning tool."
"Policy development and organizational alignment"
Nursing professional standards are fully and deeply rooted in the ideals of education and scholarship. The competencies reflecting this attitude can be fully expressed and used for benefit with the aid and assistance of social media as a tool. The general social trend toward using these platforms to communicate ideas has provided nursing educators with an opportunity to leverage technology to better enhance their profession.
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