Social media presence is a personal decision, some people choose to be very active while others choose to abstain. While I am not overly active on social media, I do believe it is a necessity I have underutilized in my career to date.
I believe appropriate social media presence is one that doesn’t interfere with living your life and one that doesn’t become all-consuming. I believe appropriate means sharing information for things you are passionate about, or you are proud to support, and it means portraying yourself in a way you are okay presenting to the world forever.
As an employee of Alberta Health Services (AHS) I will not disclose any business, Health, and/or Personal Information of other AHS employees, contractors, patients/clients, or another aspect of my position unless I am specifically authorized to disclose to social media in any capacity (Alberta Health Services, 2011). The Alberta College of Paramedics also speaks to professional standards regarding social media in their Code of Conduct. Prehospital professionals licensed in the province must adhere to privacy and confidentiality legislation, regardless of medium (Alberta College of Paramedics, 2019).
I don’t believe as a professional I am obligated to speak up in public and I find it safer to avoid posting or engaging in social media discussion about work related topics. I would never give medical advice or opinions over social media, as I worry about liability of a negative patient outcome related to advice I gave, or because of how my advice was interrupted.
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