CorpComms Magazine

Patients with a social media connection to a particular hospital are more likely to seek treatment there, according to a survey by YouGov Healthcare who are specialists in the hospital marketplace.

The Consumers' Use, Preference and Expectations of Hospital Social Media survey researched social media presence and the influential role it plays in a consumer's hospital selection process.

More than half (57 per cent) of the 1,188 consumers examined said that their social media connection with a hospital is important, and 25 per cent said that they would link up with hospitals via social media channels if they required hospital treatment in the future.

The research found that women were more likely to connect than men, and women aged between 36 and 64 were the most likely of all.

Eight in ten trust hospitals who are proficient in social media and have a strong social media presence, and said that it was more likely to have the latest 'cutting edge' technology, equipment and clinical practice.

Since February, Norwich hospital has gained more social media followers than any other NHS hospital in the country, and currently has more than 3,200 followers. Today they tweeted: 'CQC report on dignity and nutrition for elderly patients published. Many positives but also areas we need to improve on bit.ly/mIah1x.' Sheffield hospital has an official Twitter account @SheffieldHosp, which has more than 1,300 followers. And a hospital art project whose goal was to take the mystery out of x-rays set up a hashtag #radiology as part of the assignment.

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