Evaluation of Social Media Utilization by Academic Plastic Surgery Programs during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background: In response to the cancellation of away rotations and the shift to virtual interviews due to the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, residency programs have pursued other methods of sharing program details, most notably with the use of social media. This study aimed to evaluate the extent of social media utilization in the setting of the COVID-19 pandemic by plastic surgery residency programs. Methods: Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook accounts of plastic surgery programs, program directors, and chiefs were identified. Number of followers, total posts, and posts since March 1, 2020, were extracted. Account content was categorized as informational, social, operative, research, self-promotional, guest lecture, education, or other. Spearman’s coefficient was used to determine correlations among account data. Differences among regions and program pathways were evaluated using the Kruskal-Wallis test. Results: Since March 1, 2020, 17 Instagram, five Twitter, and three Facebook accounts have been created. Instagram was most widely used and followed (1720 posts, 1235.7 ± 735.9 followers) compared with Twitter (722 tweets, 325.6 ± 451.0 followers) and Facebook (430 posts, 338.3 ± 363.3 followers). Although the majority of content was informational (45.1 percent), Instagram contained more social content (21 percent), Twitter contained more research (21 percent), and Facebook contained more self-promotional content (25 percent). Integrated-only programs on average posted more on Instagram (21.5 ± 15.1 posts) than did independent-only programs (9.4 ± 8.5 posts), and post volume moderately correlated with number of followers. There were no statistically significant differences among regional means. Conclusion: Plastic surgery residency programs have incorporated social media into their recruitment strategies and will likely continue to increase and diversify their posts to effectively engage with future applicants.

The Relationship between Plastic Surgery Residency Instagram Characteristics and Doximity Rank

“… 4 All of these insights provided by social media may influence program rank lists. 5 Social media accounts can also display more widely available information in a novel manner through faculty highlights, alumni features, and publication spotlights. Furthermore, the majority of the influence social media has on an applicant’s rank list is positive.…”

Evaluating Diversity Promotion on Integrated Plastic Surgery Residency Program Websites and Instagram Accounts

“…29 As social media usage continues to grow, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, programs should use platforms such as Instagram not only to connect with prospective applicants but also to highlight important aspects of their culture, including desirable characteristics such as diversity, happiness, and resident life that are difficult to convey outside of an interview setting. [21][22][23][24][25] Our finding that programs located in smaller cities are more likely to feature diversity content on websites and Instagram raises several possibilities. Programs located in smaller cities may invest greater effort in trainee recruitment compared with their counterparts in larger cities.…”

“…Program websites are widely used by medical students applying to plastic surgery residencies; the dramatic disruption of traditional recruitment processes by the COVID-19 pandemic has led to an even greater reliance on websites and social media as opportunities for applicants to engage with programs. 11,12,[21][22][23][24][25] In a 2018 survey of plastic surgery applicants, 22% felt that websites influenced their decision to apply to a program and 34% felt that websites influenced their decision to interview for a program. 11 However, only 8% of applicants found websites to be useful because of misalignment between applicant information-seeking behaviors and website content.…”

“…Second, integrated plastic surgery residency program Instagram accounts often rely on resident contributions, suggesting that trainees are critical to driving diversity promotion 29 . As social media usage continues to grow, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, programs should use platforms such as Instagram not only to connect with prospective applicants but also to highlight important aspects of their culture, including desirable characteristics such as diversity, happiness, and resident life that are difficult to convey outside of an interview setting 21–25 …”

Having Social Media among Integrated Plastic Surgery Applicants: Is It Needed to Match?

“…During COVID-19 and the transition to virtual interviews, PRS residency programs have increased SoMe use for recruitment. 27 Given that the majority of MD and DO programs in the United States lack home PRS programs, SoMe may increase medical student exposure to the field and provide insights into specific residency programs. 28 Our study contextualizes these previous findings by showing that following PRS content on SoMe was not a significant predictor of one's own SoMe activity.…”