Becker's Health IT + Clinical Leadership + Pharmacy: 4 Questions with Austin Chiang, Chief Medical Social Media Officer at Jefferson Health; Director of Endoscopic Bariatric Program at Jefferson Health; Founding President of the Association for Healthcare

Austin Chiang, MD, MPH, serves as Chief Medical Social Media Officer at Jefferson Health; Director of Endoscopic Bariatric Program at Jefferson Health; and Founding President of the Association for Healthcare Social Media.

On May 21st, Dr. Chiang will give a presentation on "Risks and Benefits of Social Media Use by Health Professionals" at Becker's Hospital Review 3rd Annual Health IT + Clinical Leadership + Pharmacy Conference. As part of an ongoing series, Becker's is talking to healthcare leaders who plan to speak at the conference, which will take place on May 19-21, 2020 in Chicago.

To learn more about the conference and Dr. Chiang's session, click here.

Question: What initiative are you most excited about today at your healthcare organization? How will it affect the future of healthcare delivery?

Austin Chiang: For the Association for Healthcare Social Media, we are excited to equip health professionals with the tools to reach wider audiences through social media while defining best practices to ensure responsible use of these platforms. Patients are increasingly being exposed to health information online that is potentially impacting their medical decision-making. Therefore, more trained health professionals should be present online to disseminate health information. Hopefully not only will patients develop a greater trust in health professionals through this connection, but it may also improve upon their health literacy.

Q: What is the most important lesson you've learned about delivering excellent patient experience?

AC: As a full-time clinician, looking beyond the medicine and ensuring a positive patient experience during an encounter is particularly difficult. I can only imagine how difficult it is for those even further removed from clinical roles. Similarly, being attentive to how we present ourselves and market ourselves is something that is not emphasized in medical training, as we are conditioned to focus on the scientific, clinical portion of patient care.

Q: What do you see as the most dangerous trend in healthcare right now?

AC: I see the most dangerous trend as declining trust in health professionals. Furthermore, dissemination of health misinformation online and the lack of checks and balances is of great concern. There are individuals who easily market themselves as health experts without any formal medical training. Trust is already eroding for health professionals, and often patients subscribe to easy, homeopathic solutions that could otherwise delay appropriate care.

Q: What future health IT capability will have the most significant impact on clinical workflows or patient outcomes?

AC: While not directly relevant to the clinical patient experience, my hope is that there will be ways to help patients assess the quality of information they are receiving on the internet, particularly via social media.

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