What is your agency or department's policy on social networks?

[Chimpie]

As Facebook, Twitter and other social networks grow and evolve, so are policies being put forth by agencies and departments. Some have a strict no-mention-of-agency-name policy, some have a simple no-patient-info policy.

What is your agency or department's policy on social networks?

Do forums such as EMTLife fall into that category?

 

[usalsfyre]

No mention whatsoever of my employer in a publicly accessible forum. Meaning Twitter, Facebook, BBs like this, ect.

That said it's not exactly hard to figure out where I work based on things I've posted though. This is one rule I only follow the letter of, not the spirit.

 

[8jimi8]

As Facebook, Twitter and other social networks grow and evolve, so are policies being put forth by agencies and departments. Some have a strict no-mention-of-agency-name policy, some have a simple no-patient-info policy.

What is your agency or department's policy on social networks?

Do forums such as EMTLife fall into that category?

Do not violate HIPAA. My manager's policy: Don't embarass the hospital or unit.

My policy: Don't run people away from wanting to be a patient where I work.

 

[Monkey]

No pics of ambulances, engines, trucks... and no using it while on duty, but they don't have strict policy against posting that you work there.

 

[lampnyter]

We can use it and even say what station we are currently at.

 

[Sasha]

The owner of my company simply said "I can't stop you from posting anything on facebook but find it in very bad taste to post about work/patients/nurses."

 

[Ewok Jerky]

I believe the only policy is no pictures with company logo, that is what I was told when I got hired. My personal rule is don't bring unwanted attention to myself or rock the boat.

Recently my company settled out of court with an employee who was fired for making desperaging(spelling?) comments on facebook, and is now reconsidering it's "internet policy". Now you all know who I work for

 

[dmc2007]

My hometown (volunteer) agency has no formal policy.

My campus agency specifically prohibits us from posting any statuses, notes, wall posts, etc. about specific calls, number of calls on a given night, or other healthcare providers. On a campus of ~7000, a status about having having a particular type of call can easily be used to connect a patient with a chief complaint. If one our members were to post a status about having an alcohol call last night, and one of their friends (or random person viewing the page) saw that person getting wheeled out of a dorm, patient privacy has been compromised. Further, the campus newspaper can easily use things posted on Facebook to create a story without getting context, something that needs to be avoided.

The commercial company I'm soon to start with doesn't have a formal policy that I'm aware of, but we were told during orientation to avoid posting things to Facebook having to do with the job, especially if they relate to a patient.

 

[bigbaldguy]

I went to a school associated with AMR and I got a look at their social media policy (the schools not AMR) and it was truly draconian. Basically it boiled down to a zero use policy. It was so strict that I really don't see how it could even be enforceable. My current volley org doesn't have much of a policy other than common sense.

 

[shfd739]

My company encourages use of facebook, blogs etc.

Our policy though is a general don't be stupid, don't violate HIPPA,and don't make us look bad. Every so often I have to ask a medic to edit or delete a post but for the most part everyone does fine.

 

[JPINFV]

Recently my company settled out of court with an employee who was fired for making desperaging(spelling?) comments on facebook, and is now reconsidering it's "internet policy". Now you all know who I work for

...which would be AMR I believe. However (in the AMR case), I find it hard to believe that an unlocked Facebook account represents privileged labor communications.

 

[HotelCo]

My company encourage: us to identify ourselves as employees of the company. We just can't post things that would negatively impact the company, or our hospital contracts.

 

[Dominion]

We have not been barred from posting pictures of the company or ambulances, yet. We have been barred from posting bad things about the company or employees within the company. It's still a very grey area, there is not SPECIFIC policy in place yet.

I solve this issue by not adding my supervisors and keeping my profile private and my posts typically have various filters on who I do and do not want to see them. These filters are very easy to setup with friends groups. When you make a post, click on the little lock icon and it will let you block certain friends or groups from seeing those posts or videos. For me this is problem solved. I also don't bad mouth the company on the internet, just out loud

 

[JJR512]

Here is my volunteer company's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2225975792

It isn't particularly active. Many of the company members talk more about what's been going on on their own Facebook pages, and don't think to put the pictures or mention the latest big news or whatever on the group page.

 

[emt_irl]

my service was 100% against any insignia or chatter posted up on social networking sites, then a few months later, they themselfs started up a facebook page! doesnt make sense to us

 

[harryb714]

a friend of mine sent me this a while back...

http://runningahospital.blogspot.com/2010/08/blocking-facebook-wont-stop-stupidity.html

 

[Lady_EMT]

We have the obvious policy - No HIPPA information, or anything that could sort of lead to any idea about our call. I know this idiot on our corps put a post up after a code, "Guess you can't save them all, we lost him." as her status. My Chief very promptly called her and told her to delete it. They keep pretty good tabs on it, and if any of us see anything that could be considered HIPPA on facebook, we'll contact each other and get it offline.

I once posted online "New Hartford ambulance, standby for dispatch, (our address,) for the broken leg (or something like that, we were all messing around in the parking lot.)" Pure joke, no information at all, and I get a frantic phone call from a board member from the department, screaming at me that I couldn't post HIPPA information, and what if the family saw that, and yadda yadda yadda, finally I got her calmed down enough and told her to reread the address, and finally she caught on that it was our address

 

[Sasha]

We have the obvious policy - No HIPPA information, or anything that could sort of lead to any idea about our call. I know this idiot on our corps put a post up after a code, "Guess you can't save them all, we lost him." as her status. My Chief very promptly called her and told her to delete it. They keep pretty good tabs on it, and if any of us see anything that could be considered HIPPA on facebook, we'll contact each other and get it offline.

I once posted online "New Hartford ambulance, standby for dispatch, (our address,) for the broken leg (or something like that, we were all messing around in the parking lot.)" Pure joke, no information at all, and I get a frantic phone call from a board member from the department, screaming at me that I couldn't post HIPPA information, and what if the family saw that, and yadda yadda yadda, finally I got her calmed down enough and told her to reread the address, and finally she caught on that it was our address

I don't see how that is posting any patient information.

As far as I see it, facebook is my personal page. Not the companies. As long as I'm not posting any protected information or from their equipment then they really don't have a say over what I post.

Of course they are free to fire me, just like I'm free to seek another job that has an internet policy more in tune with my own. Fortunately this is one of the things I don't mind about my company.

 

[medicRob]

The medical center that I work with makes it quite clear that we are to in no way acknowledge them as our employer in any form of social communication other than putting them as our employer on facebook along with a little disclaimer tag that has to go into our bio.

 

[JPINFV]

I don't see how that is posting any patient information.

It would depend on the situation. If you're in a tiny town, I could see how it could be considered PHI. It's like the signs in the elevator at hospitals reminding staff not to talk about cases. It's one thing to be talking about the patient on the 5th floor at a restaurant with colleagues. It's another to talk about the patient on the 5th floor while on your way up the elevator to the 5th floor.