The answer is yes because millennials do in fact tend to gravitate towards social media for consultation on healthcare problems as well as education. In addition to that, social media has an enormous impact on lifestyle choices, medical advice, as well as provider selection.
According to statistics, 75% of individuals refer to social media to enquire about signs and symptoms. According to PwC Health Research Institute, a staggering 90% of individuals from ages 18 to 24, believe the medical information shared on their social media newsfeed. Millennials place social media in high regard when it comes to sourcing reliable medical information and the results of this study stand to confirm the assumption.
This is a potentially challenging issue if the youth is consorting to popular opinions circulating the web without seeking proper medical consultation or inspecting the fed information. According to Epiphany Resources, one in five Americans has admitted to consuming medicine originally prescribed for someone else or misuse of prescribed drugs for recreational purposes.
Customer reviews are the backbone of the decisions made regarding anything. Just like any other service or product, millennials base their inclinations on customer reviews. According to reports, 42% of the population accesses reviews on social media before formally selecting a healthcare provider or taking any other healthcare-related decision. Healthgrades, Consumer Reports, even GlassDoor.com have reviews that could affect the way that providers are perceived by millennials.
Approximately 40% of the population states that social media influences service provider related decisions or selections. While there are many ways in which healthcare consumers affect one another’s decisions on social media, healthcare providers also have authority. 41% of the people indicated a provider’s social media presence influencing their decision-making process.
Due to the mentioned reason, hospitals, healthcare facility centers, aa well as healthcare providers are directing their focus towards social media engagement, participation, and propagation. Cloud Dentistry claims to many hospitals now building social media strategies to enable effective communication with providers on well-known public forums.
The CDC is promoting healthcare providers and leaders to be more active on social media. According to the CDC’s Millennial Health Leader’s Summit, social media can be utilized in the following ways:
-Educating communities not being adequately reached
-Offering useful content where consumers are present
-Enabling real-time conversation
-Improving thought leadership and credibility
For these reasons, social media is being encouragingly used as a tool by members of the healthcare community. The Summit also introduced a significant amount of information regarding the best methods and practices healthcare professionals can utilize to attract a greater audience on social media.
