Evaluating the Online Presence of Orthopaedic Surgeons

Earp, Brandon E.; Kuo, Kristen; Shoji, Marissa K.; Mora, Ariana N.; Benavent, Kyra A.; Blazar, Philip E.

doi:10.5435/jaaos-d-18-00610

Cited by 9 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Social media has become a popular platform for surgeons to publicize services available to patients 15 . Residency programs, facing the unique constraints of recruitment during the COVID-19 pandemic, have similarly adopted social media as a way of interacting with prospective trainees.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program Social Media Presence During the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2021

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Background:In light of away rotation and in-person interview cancellations for the 2020 to 2021 application cycle, social media has become a popular tool for orthopaedic surgery residency programs to highlight their strengths, curricula, and social life to prospective applicants. The authors sought to explore the proliferation and utilization of 3 popular social media platforms by both orthopaedic surgery departments and residencies.Methods:Orthopaedic surgery departmental and residency program social media accounts and their creation dates across Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram were identified using a standardized search methodology. Residency Instagram accounts were further evaluated for the number of posts, followers, likes, and comments. Both departments and residency programs were cohorted by affiliation with a US News &World Report (USNWR) top 50 American hospital for orthopaedics or by status as a Doximity top 20 program based on reputation.Results:Across a total of 192 residency programs included for analysis, Instagram was the most popular social media platform (61.5%), followed by Twitter (19.8%) and Facebook (10.4%). Conversely, orthopaedic departments more frequently used Facebook (33.9%) and Twitter (28.1%) over Instagram (17.2%). Of the 118 residency Instagram accounts, 102 (86.4%) were created after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Larger residency programs (≥6 spots/year) and those programs in the Doximity top 20 or affiliated with USNWR top 50 orthopaedic hospitals had a greater number of followers as well as likes and comments per post (p < 0.05 for all).Conclusions:Given the recruitment challenges faced by residency programs because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Instagram has rapidly become a prominent platform for attracting orthopaedic surgery applicants. These accounts have a large number of followers, particularly for residency programs with higher Doximity reputation rankings.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program Social Media Presence During the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2021

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“…Online resources are commonly utilized by hand and upper extremity patients, and patients' preconceived understandings of their conditions may frame subsequent office discussions. 1 3 6 Historically, the quality of information available on the internet about hand surgery conditions has been poor. 2 Moreover, online information is written on average at a higher than recommended reading grade level for musculoskeletal conditions in general 7 and hand conditions in particular.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Usefulness of Instagram Posts Tagging Hand Surgery Conditions

Zhang

Earp

2022

Journal of Hand and Microsurgery

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Introduction The objective of this study was to assess the usefulness of Instagram posts for users seeking information about common hand conditions. Materials and Methods An internet-based study was performed of the top 200 trending posts on Instagram for each of the tags #carpaltunnel and #triggerfinger. The trending position (1 through 200), number of likes (for all posts), and number of views (for video posts only) were recorded. Each post was assessed to determine whether it would be useful for a user seeking medical information. Useful and not useful posts were further classified into thematic categories. Results Useful posts comprised only 21% of #carpaltunnel posts and 12% of #triggerfinger posts. #carpaltunnel had a significantly higher proportion of useful posts than #triggerfinger. For both #carpaltunnel and #trigger finger, useful posts were not associated with trending position or number of likes. Useful posts commonly provided a clinical image or an anatomical diagram. Posts that were not useful were generally irrelevant to the hand condition, but a minority provided information not supported by evidence or were solely advertising material. Conclusion Hand surgery patients can be educated that, in its current form, Instagram is not a source of useful information about common hand conditions.

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“…More than 56% of the world's population, and more than 80% of the developed world, has access to the internet (1,2). A sizable percentage of hand surgery patients research their conditions on the internet prior to their initial consultation, and the information available on the internet informs their self-assessment and diagnosis and frames subsequent discussions in the office (3)(4)(5). As such, it is important that patients of all health literacy levels have access to appropriately written health-related information needed to make informed decisions (6).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dupuytren's Contracture: The Readability of Online Information

Hosseinzadeh

Blazar

Earp

et al. 2021

Journal of Patient Experience

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Dupuytren's contracture is a common hand pathology for which consultation and treatment are largely at the patient's discretion. The objective of this study was to evaluate the readability of current online patient information regarding Dupuytren's contracture. The largest public search engines (Google, Yahoo, and Bing) were queried using the search terms “Dupuytren's contracture,” “Dupuytren's disease,” “Viking's disease,” and “bent finger.” The first 30 unique websites by each search were analyzed and readability assessed using five established algorithms: Flesch Reading Ease, Gunning-Fog Index, Flesch–Kincaid Grade level, Coleman–Liau index, and Simple Measure of Gobbledygook grade level. Analysis of 73 websites demonstrated an average Flesch Reading Ease score of 48.6 ± 8.0, which corresponds to college reading level. The readability of websites ranged from 10.5 to 13.3 reading grade level. No article was written at or below the recommended sixth grade reading level. Information on the internet on Dupuytren's contracture is written at higher than recommended reading grade level. There is a need for high-quality patient information on Dupuytren's contracture at appropriate reading grade levels for patients of various health literacy backgrounds. Hospitals, universities, and academic organizations focused on the development of readable online information should consider patients’ input and preferences.

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Evaluating the Online Presence of Orthopaedic Surgeons

Cited by 9 publications

References 13 publications

Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program Social Media Presence During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Orthopaedic Surgery Residency Program Social Media Presence During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Usefulness of Instagram Posts Tagging Hand Surgery Conditions

Dupuytren's Contracture: The Readability of Online Information

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