title: Social media: opportunities for quality improvement and lessons for providers-a networked model for patient-centered care through digital engagement.
abstract: Social media brings a new dimension to health care for patients, providers, and their support networks. Increasing evidence demonstrates that patients who are more actively involved in their healthcare experience have better health outcomes and incur lower costs. In the field of cardiology, social media are proposed as innovative tools for the education and update of clinicians, physicians, nurses, and medical students. This article reviews the use of social media by healthcare providers and patients and proposes a model of "networked care" that integrates the use of digital social networks and platforms by both patients and providers and offers recommendations for providers to optimize their use and understanding of social media for quality improvement.
authors.affiliation: Center for Communication Science, RTI International, 6110 Executive Boulevard, Suite 902, Rockville, MD, 20852, USA, abornkessel@rti.org.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bornkessel
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Furberg
authors.forename: R Craig
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Lefebvre
mesh_terms: D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D010358:Patient Participation / Q000379:methods*; D018802:Patient-Centered Care; D058996:Quality Improvement; D061108:Social Media