Social Media in Palliative Care Communities: A New Workshop at the AAHPM/HPNA Annual Assembly

A new workshop on the usage of online social media has been added to the AAHPM/HPNA Annual Assembly this March. The session, titled “Social Media in Palliative Care Communities: Developing and Maintaining your Online Presence”, will be led by a panel of bloggers from GeriPal and Pallimed and will take place on  Friday March 5th, 7-8:15am (I know, it’s early, but it’s nothing that a double expresso can’t fix).

The goal of the workshop is to bring people together interested in using social media to advance the field of Hospice and Palliative Care.  The great thing about setting up a workshop like this is that we get to take advantage of the resources that these online networks give us in developing the actual content. One of these tools is a brief survey that Christian Sinclair created to get an understanding of what potential attendees may want from such a session.   So take 3 minutes of your time and either fill out the survey or post comments here or at Pallimed on topics that may motivate you to wake up at 7am on Friday.

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Here is the abstract for the session:

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Social Media in Palliative Care Communities: Developing and Maintaining your Online Presence.

Time: Friday March 5th, 7-8:15am

Panel:

Amy Clarkson, MD, Kansas City Hospice & Palliative Care, Kansas City, MO (Pallimed)

Christian Sinclair, MD, FAAHPM, Kansas City Hospice & Palliative Care, Kansas City, MO (Pallimed)

Alexander Smith, MD, UC San Francisco (GeriPal)

Eric Widera, MD, UC San Francisco (GeriPal)

Amber Wollesen, MD, Saint Luke’s Hospital, Kansas City, MO (Pallimed)

Abstract:

In this session, the panel will present the various social media platforms where palliative care information is being created, commented on, and shared. Understanding the importance of social media to hospice and palliative care as a field is helpful in spreading information consistent with our professional values, dispelling myths, and educating professionals in addition to patients and families. We will present successful examples of palliative care in social media from the perspective on the individual as well as the larger community. Despite the opportunities, there are concerns about privacy, time commitment, and legal risks which will also be addressed. The session will not go into detail on the ‘how-to’ aspects of specific social media platforms. The initial presentation will be approximately 30-40 minutes with plenty of time for discussion with the audience and panel.