Facebook and Twitter in Dermatology

Facts about facebook

Most visited website in the world with 1.3 billion users

72 % visit the website at least once a month

829million daily users

Duration of each visit lasts on average 21 minutes

Facts about Twitter

1 billion users

550 million accounts

BUT 44% never tweeted

271million monthly users

average time per month 170 minutes

Each user has an average of 208 followers

All in all, Twitter and Facebook reach one third of the world population

This translates into widespread use of social media as a means of communication both personally and professionally

top journals on paper: Journal of Investigative Dermatology (JID), Pigment cell & Melanoma Research, Journal of American Academy of Dermatology (JAAD)

top journals on facebook: JAAD, JID, JAMA Dermatology (formerly archives of dermatology)

top journals on twitter: Dermatology Times, JAMA dermatology

Social media can impact journal reach (Impact factors). New concept: « Social Media Impact Factor »: reach more people and give more space for publications and for there to be quoted

• Journals are not very active yet and are late to understand this:
  • only 12.7% of dermatology journals are present on facebook and 13% on twitter
  • Some medical journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine accumulates 401000likes on twitter and facebook
  • possible reasons:
    • tighter budget and increasing costs

• Facebook and Twitter are more scructured for different type of content
  • facebook
    • table of content
    • articles
    • articles published online first
    • updates
    • clinical trials
    • media
    • direct communication
  • twitter:
    • short and specific topics
    • timely and interesting commentaries
    • job offers

But never forget that social media is all about sharing with colleagues (and friends)

Contributors

Dr Christophe Hsu – dermatologist. Geneva, Switzerland

Source of information: 2014 (10) – Suppa M. EADV Annual Meeting, Amsterdam The Netherlands