Social Media to Make Professional Connections (I)

<p>Dave L. Dixon, PharmD, BCACP, BCPS, CDE, CLS  - Virginia Commonwealth University School of Pharmacy and - Brent N. Reed, PharmD, BCPS, BCCP  - University of Maryland School of Pharmacy - talk with us about using social media for professional development and staying current with the latest evidence to support your practice.</p> <p>Key Lessons:</p> <ul><li>Social media includes a wide range of online applications intended to interact with other users in a public setting.</li> <li>Social media, especially Twitter, has become an increasingly important forum for connecting with professional colleagues and engaging in dialog about cutting edge issues that impact patient care and pharmacy practice.</li> <li>Social media use should be done in a systematic, thoughtful way - you need to decide what your goals are, who to follow, and how frequently to check your social media feeds.</li> <li>Being a passive recipient of social media posts (aka being a "lurker") is a great way to get started but eventually, you may wish to share and comment on content you find valuable ... as well as create your own original content.</li> <li>Learning how to curate your social media feed can help prevent information overload.</li> <li>Following a professional conference (and the people attending) on Twitter can enhance the conference experience and enable those who are not able to attend the conference to learn about what's happening.</li> <li>Engaging in social media can be personally and professionally rewarding.  Share your personality!  It should be fun.</li> </ul> <p>Get the <a href='https://www.notion.so/pharmacyforward/PharmacyForward-Social-Media-fd19ea4f3fd84d2a8e8bbb97cf93b345'>Social Media Infographic</a> by Ashley and Brooke Barlow (@theABofPharmaC)</p>