I am currently working as an assistant ward nurse at Kuopio University Hospital. In addition, I do some patient work. The most research performed in our unit is a clinical stress test, lung function tests and long-term registrations. My job is very diverse customer and managerial work. In my work, I am responsible for the shift planning of nurses and the day-to-day running of the unit. There are a lot of practical arrangements involved in my work. The digital applications I need daily in my work are the patient information system, smartphone, email, and Microsoft Teams. 

I use several digital systems every day. Patient information system, RIS- appointment program, goods ordering system and Titania shift planning program. Email and teams are the main channels of communication and of course the telephone. Teams acts as a common communication channel in our workplace and is also used to organize trainings and meetings. For study purposes I use also Moodle and Oppiportti.

We use the digital systems that make it possible to get the job done on a daily basis. Istekki, a company providing information and technology services, is responsible for digital systems. We do not use other digital systems.  For safety reasons, other communication applications are not allowed to use for work purposes. 

Sosial media

The use of social media is global, it can be used for many different purposes. Can connect with people around the world, can study, work, market, etc. Social media reaches its target audience quickly and efficiently. Communication is often real-time.

Unfortunately, the use of social media is increasingly associated with negative traits. Identity theft and various scams and frauds have a downside on social media. Abuses, especially against children and the elderly, have increased. The use of social media can also become a problem for some people, most of the day time goes to monitoring social media. Excessive monitoring of social media can make it harder to sleep, reduce mobility, and thus impair overall well-being.

Linkedln, It is a social media tool used for recruitment. The use of this channel for the recruitment of health professionals is still quite limited, I think this channel could be used even more. Users of this channel may have more academic degrees than nursing graduates. Reachability is limited, but the channel should be promoted more to the hospital as well.

Facebook, I used the facebook app, but I terminated my account a few years ago. I think Facebook became more of an advertising channel, more and more identity theft started to come to light, so I decided I didn’t need this media channel. I have not regretted my decision and I did very well without it.The use of facebook pages in healthcare is variable. In some organizations, facebook is a very popular means of communication and communication, while in other organizations, the use of Facebook is blocked, as in my own organization. So I know very little about the use of Facebook in healthcare.

InstagramI have an Instagram account that I rarely update, in that sense I’m a bad friends  for my followers. Yes, I go every day to read and look at the pictures that the people I follow put there.  My work unit has an Instagram account and we update current pictures of our work there. The use of Instagram in healthcare has increased dramatically over the past year. Units make good updates on their own units and special expertise.The purpose of this account is also to get young people interested in healthcare sector. There is a lot of competition for skilled workers today.

Twitter, is a new channel for me that I’ve signed up for and I’ve chosen who or what kind of tweets I follow. I haven’t dared to tweet anything at all yet. I like this because there are no ads in the eyes here. Twitter works well in passing on information from official bodies, such as the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare. The information can be trusted and is tweeted by experts.

Youtube, The addition of videos and images in patient guidance has increased tremendously and will certainly increase further. Many patients seek information from studies before entering the study and it is the responsibility of our experts to provide the correct information and therefore it is important to choose the publication channel carefully. Youtube is a well-known and secure channel for publishing material. We will certainly use this channel more and more in the future.

Using social media in healthcare

The use of social media in healthcare has increased a lot in recent years. Access to information is easy and effortless. The downside is that the information is general, individual guidance and advice cannot be given through Facebook. Updating up-to-date instructions and information requires resources and time, which can be challenging in some units. Data is also changing at a rapid pace. Communicating false information on social media forums is a downside to using the platform. I chose a few of the social media tools used in the healthcare industry.

Self evaluation

I hadn’t used WorldPress before and maybe this will sometimes benefit me too. It was good to learn how to use it. It was nice to read other people’s blogs. This course has taught me to build a blog and digitalization offers a lot of opportunities.