Physician organizations, like physicians in general, have been slow to see the value of social media. Organizations like the American Academy of Family Physicians have been trying out the different social media platforms over the past few months. About a year ago, I remember being at an AAFP meeting and only being one of a few physicians utilizing twitter during a meeting.
Last month, during a major AAFP meeting, I saw a tipping point reached with many physicians utilizing social media - including members of the AAFP Board of Directors. I wrote about this in a post entitled, "Why Family Medicine Needs Social Media." A lot of people read this post. I was pleasantly surprised by this. I was wondering what was going to happen next.
Then, a few weeks ago, I saw a tweet from AAFP stating that the organization was seeking a Social Media Manager. I applaud the organization for taking this step. As the organization starts to utilize the different social media platforms, I hope that AAFP will take the next step to educate its members on its benefits. As physicians gain more knowledge about social media, hopefully, this will empower them to use social media more.