Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery • February 2014 medical officer replied, “Of course we do,” to which the entire assembly, almost in unison replied “No we Don’t!” The medical officer looked sheepishly at those on the stage around her. We all know what teams are and we rarely put together the specific teams we need on a regular and uniform basis. The health officers know that, and that is why the cardiac surgery groups do assemble qualified teams that are rarely if ever altered. However, because of the expense and the lack of flexibility, the chief health officers and the administrative executives currently running many of our operating rooms propose economical poor substitutes for teams and congratulate themselves on what a great job they have done. I would propose that these health officers and administrators get out from behind their clipboards and come down to the operating room and talk with the nurses and surgeons to find out what is actually happening. Perhaps then they would make the true changes that are required for excellent health care, which is to invest in real teams that train and practice and drill to become the best care givers that are possible. It really is not rocket science and it may cost a bit more and lead to less flexibility, but if excellence in patient care is truly the goal, that is exactly what is required. The Navy SEAL you mention in your note would never undertake a mission in which he or she looked around and saw a “team” that was brought together randomly or because of scheduling constraints and budgetary considerations, or that did not regularly practice and drill to become the best at what they do. Multiple time-outs and calling everyone by their first name is a poor substitute for an actual team.
Percentage of plastic surgeons
DOI: 10.1097/01.prs.0000437248.63080.cb
Steven R. Buchman, M.D.
University of Michigan Medical Center 1540 East Hospital Drive 4-730 C. W. Mott Children’s Hospital Ann Arbor, Mich. 48109-4215 [email protected]
DISCLOSURE The author has no financial interest to declare in relation to the content of this communication. REFERENCE 1. Wood D. Build teams to run marathons, not sprints. In: Davis B, ed. 97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know: Collective Wisdom from the Experts. Cambridge, Mass: O’Reilly; 2009.
Social Media Use and Impact on Plastic Surgery Practice Sir: read with interest the publication entitled “Social Media Use and Impact on Plastic Surgery Practice” by Vardanian et al.1 I would like to congratulate the authors on undertaking a comprehensive survey of the use of social media by members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and its impact on their clinical practice. In 2012, my colleagues and I published the results of a survey on the use of the Internet and Web 2.0 technology by plastic surgeons within the United Kingdom and Ireland. Social media allow users to create and exchange content by using Web
I
100
Stevens et al. (2012)
90
Vardanian et al. (2013)
80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Social networking
Media sharing
Web blog
Wiki
Social media Fig. 1. Comparison of surveys of plastic surgeons using social networking (Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter), media sharing (YouTube), Web blog, and wiki. (Data from Vardanian AJ, Kusnezov N, Im DD, Lee JC, Jarrahy R. Social media use and impact on plastic surgery practice. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2013;131:1184–1193; and Stevens RJG, Hamilton NM, O’Donoghue JM, Davies MP. The use of the Internet and social software by plastic surgeons. Eur J Plast Surg. 2012;35:747–755.)
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Volume 133, Number 2 • Letters 2.0 technology. In our survey, 356 members of the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons were contacted.2 Although our response rate was disappointing at 26 percent, it was greater than that of Vardanian et al., which was only 9.7 percent. Our survey showed that 37.9 percent of the members of the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons did not know what Web 2.0 technology is. We demonstrated that plastic surgeons used various aspects of social media: 36.2 percent used social networking (including Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter), 39.7 percent used media sharing (e.g., YouTube), 41.3 percent read or wrote a Web blog, and 1.7 percent contributed to a wiki. Figure 1 compares our data to those of Vardanian et al. and shows that more plastic surgeons in our survey use media sharing, Web blog, and wiki, but fewer use social networking than those in the survey by Vardanian et al. Furthermore, our survey demonstrated that 53.4 percent would like Web 2.0 technology to be used in the national e-learning project being developed by the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons (e-learning in Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons), whereas 8.6 percent would not.2 It is interesting to note that Vardanian et al. reported that 1.5 percent of plastic surgeons experienced negative repercussions from their use of social media and that 31.2 percent had limited their use of social media because of concerns surrounding patient confidentiality.1 In the United Kingdom, where medical practice is ultimately regulated by the General Medical Council, professional guidance has been provided
by the General Medical Council on the careful and appropriate use of social networking by physicians.3 I appreciate that the focus of the publication was the impact of social media on clinical practice rather than education. However, social media are a potentially powerful means of integrating and enhancing education, and may have a particularly useful role in e-learning within plastic surgery.2 DOI: 10.1097/01.prs.0000437251.47833.05
Roger J. G. Stevens, M.Sc., D.I.C., M.R.C.S.(Eng.) Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Polwarth Building University of Aberdeen Foresterhill Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom [email protected]
DISCLOSURE The author has no financial interest to declare in relation to the content of this communication. REFERENCES 1. Vardanian AJ, Kusnezov N, Im DD, Lee JC, Jarrahy R. Social media use and impact on plastic surgery practice. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2013;131:1184–1193. 2. Stevens RJG, Hamilton NM, O’Donoghue JM, Davies MP. The use of the Internet and social software by plastic surgeons. Eur J Plast Surg. 2012;35:747–755. 3. General Medical Council. Doctors’ use of social media. Available at: http://www.gmc-uk.org/Doctors__use_of_ social_media.pdf_51448306.pdf. Accessed August 3, 2013.
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Percentage of plastic surgeons
DOI: 10.1097/01.prs.0000437248.63080.cb
Steven R. Buchman, M.D.
University of Michigan Medical Center 1540 East Hospital Drive 4-730 C. W. Mott Children’s Hospital Ann Arbor, Mich. 48109-4215 [email protected]
DISCLOSURE The author has no financial interest to declare in relation to the content of this communication. REFERENCE 1. Wood D. Build teams to run marathons, not sprints. In: Davis B, ed. 97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know: Collective Wisdom from the Experts. Cambridge, Mass: O’Reilly; 2009.
Social Media Use and Impact on Plastic Surgery Practice Sir: read with interest the publication entitled “Social Media Use and Impact on Plastic Surgery Practice” by Vardanian et al.1 I would like to congratulate the authors on undertaking a comprehensive survey of the use of social media by members of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons and its impact on their clinical practice. In 2012, my colleagues and I published the results of a survey on the use of the Internet and Web 2.0 technology by plastic surgeons within the United Kingdom and Ireland. Social media allow users to create and exchange content by using Web
I
100
Stevens et al. (2012)
90
Vardanian et al. (2013)
80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Social networking
Media sharing
Web blog
Wiki
Social media Fig. 1. Comparison of surveys of plastic surgeons using social networking (Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter), media sharing (YouTube), Web blog, and wiki. (Data from Vardanian AJ, Kusnezov N, Im DD, Lee JC, Jarrahy R. Social media use and impact on plastic surgery practice. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2013;131:1184–1193; and Stevens RJG, Hamilton NM, O’Donoghue JM, Davies MP. The use of the Internet and social software by plastic surgeons. Eur J Plast Surg. 2012;35:747–755.)
228e
Volume 133, Number 2 • Letters 2.0 technology. In our survey, 356 members of the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons were contacted.2 Although our response rate was disappointing at 26 percent, it was greater than that of Vardanian et al., which was only 9.7 percent. Our survey showed that 37.9 percent of the members of the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons did not know what Web 2.0 technology is. We demonstrated that plastic surgeons used various aspects of social media: 36.2 percent used social networking (including Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter), 39.7 percent used media sharing (e.g., YouTube), 41.3 percent read or wrote a Web blog, and 1.7 percent contributed to a wiki. Figure 1 compares our data to those of Vardanian et al. and shows that more plastic surgeons in our survey use media sharing, Web blog, and wiki, but fewer use social networking than those in the survey by Vardanian et al. Furthermore, our survey demonstrated that 53.4 percent would like Web 2.0 technology to be used in the national e-learning project being developed by the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons (e-learning in Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons), whereas 8.6 percent would not.2 It is interesting to note that Vardanian et al. reported that 1.5 percent of plastic surgeons experienced negative repercussions from their use of social media and that 31.2 percent had limited their use of social media because of concerns surrounding patient confidentiality.1 In the United Kingdom, where medical practice is ultimately regulated by the General Medical Council, professional guidance has been provided
by the General Medical Council on the careful and appropriate use of social networking by physicians.3 I appreciate that the focus of the publication was the impact of social media on clinical practice rather than education. However, social media are a potentially powerful means of integrating and enhancing education, and may have a particularly useful role in e-learning within plastic surgery.2 DOI: 10.1097/01.prs.0000437251.47833.05
Roger J. G. Stevens, M.Sc., D.I.C., M.R.C.S.(Eng.) Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Polwarth Building University of Aberdeen Foresterhill Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom [email protected]
DISCLOSURE The author has no financial interest to declare in relation to the content of this communication. REFERENCES 1. Vardanian AJ, Kusnezov N, Im DD, Lee JC, Jarrahy R. Social media use and impact on plastic surgery practice. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2013;131:1184–1193. 2. Stevens RJG, Hamilton NM, O’Donoghue JM, Davies MP. The use of the Internet and social software by plastic surgeons. Eur J Plast Surg. 2012;35:747–755. 3. General Medical Council. Doctors’ use of social media. Available at: http://www.gmc-uk.org/Doctors__use_of_ social_media.pdf_51448306.pdf. Accessed August 3, 2013.
229e
