Social Media

bluegeegoo2, LPN · Apr 30, 2014

The closest policy I have seen involving social media is that we had to sign a form banning us from posting anything "derogatory" about the facility/corporation that employed us. If we did and management found out, it was grounds for termination. As far as individuals posting about each other, it was open season.

Ruby Vee, BSN · May 1, 2014

Are they posting derogatory things about coworkers after identifying where they work? Are they posting while they're at work? Are they giving too much information about patients or work situations? That's a firing offense. My employer fired an employee for making a racist remark on FaceBook about a professional athlete. The employee had listed her employer on her profile, and her bosses didn't want her racist remark associated with them. As I understand it, there are people in the IT department whose main job is to comb the social media for posts made by employees that could reflect badly on the institution.

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · May 1, 2014

Yes and some have been very specific.....here is the Generals....Social Media Guidelines for Employees - Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA

CapeCodMermaid, RN · May 1, 2014

The 'IT' department in my building consists of the administrator and me. We certainly don't have the time to read Facebook while at work....hmmm, well I don't!

Ruas61, BSN, RN · May 1, 2014

The 'IT' department in my building consists of the administrator and me. We certainly don't have the time to read Facebook while at work....hmmm, well I don't!

I am laughing myself silly here at the visual.

ktwlpn, LPN · May 3, 2014

We have one-it was written after a cna threatened bodily harm against her supervisor over something that occurred during her shift. She posted the threats while still on that shift.We have had staff feeding residents with one hand and texting with their cell phone in the other,nurses wearing their bluetooth while passing meds, people frequently call in sick and then post pics of themselves out at clubs.We also have some supervisors and administrators out drinking in places where a good number or staff go, pics are frequently posted of them.Then you have cna's fighting among themelves on the floor and on Facebook.I hate Facebook!

abbnurse · May 22, 2014

... people frequently call in sick and then post pics of themselves out at clubs.We also have some supervisors and administrators out drinking in places where a good number or staff go, pics are frequently posted of them.Then you have cna's fighting among themelves on the floor and on Facebook.I hate Facebook!

We must work in the same place, lol!

And to answer your question Cape Cod Mermaid, we have a strict social media policy ......Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and the like are "blocked" on most computers throughout the facility, and employees' phones are to be OUT OF SIGHT during on- the- clock hours. ....the policy is rather extreme compared to some that I've heard of, but it had gotten completely out of control with the constant texting, viewing of Facebook every two seconds by some staff , etc.

NurseGuyBri · Jun 14, 2014

I will tell you this from a corporate perspective. The big companies ARE checking your facebook. They are looking at how often do you cut people down- how often do you judge patients or complain about your job. Is your picture tasteful. When looking for potential employees, we use EVERYTHING to determine what kind of person you will be when you represent the company. So yes, they do check. My company also has an EXTENSIVE policy, up to including that we post a disclaimer on any social media main page that "anything on this page reflects the opinions of the individual posting them, not any corporate or business entity, whether directly stated or implied" or something similar.

Funny thing- If you follow corporate social media policy, it actually makes you act a little better on face book. In turn, makes you a little less judgement, a good quality anyway. We need to be critical of things as nurses, but not judgmental. huge difference.

ktwlpn, LPN · Jun 14, 2014

we use EVERYTHING to determine what kind of person you will be when you represent the company..

That's the fact right there that a whole generation of people do not "get". They are representing their employer and their behaviors reflect on everyone. This generation knows nothing about loyalty to a company because they have not been exposed to that, in this economy it no longer exists. How do you make them understand you can have one without the other? It's a party all shift for many and they post stupid pics on Facebook, clearly showing identifiable areas of the facility.Visitors observe the behavior, too. Their response to constructive criticism? "That's just stupid"

Ruby Vee, BSN · Jun 14, 2014

That's the fact right there that a whole generation of people do not "get". They are representing their employer and their behaviors reflect on everyone. This generation knows nothing about loyalty to a company because they have not been exposed to that, in this economy it no longer exists. How do you make them understand you can have one without the other? It's a party all shift for many and they post stupid pics on Facebook, clearly showing identifiable areas of the facility.Visitors observe the behavior, too. Their response to constructive criticism? "That's just stupid"

How do you explain that you can have one without the other? One what? Please explain.

ktwlpn, LPN · Jun 14, 2014

Ooops,that doesn't make sense,does it? I meant to ask how do we encourage an employee to present themselves in a professional manner as a representation of their organization when they feel their employer gives them nothing in return? They don't believe in loyalty to a company because they have never seen it (and we have seen what happened to that as the economy tanked) They think it's ok to just show up and collect that check-nothing more. They don't understand or seem to care that this carries even to the parking lot, the halls,the coffee shop...Facebook.