Health promotion via Twitter: a case study of three medical centers in the USA.

Healthcare institutions including hospitals and clinics are increasingly using social media platforms, such as Twitter, to raise awareness in the community about health and wellness topics. In line with this trend, this study seeks to understand how three leading medical centers in the USA use Twitter to share educational content about medical conditions, treatments, preventive measures and other health-related topics. A sample of tweets posted by Cleveland Clinic, Johns Hopkins Hospital and Mayo Clinic during a 6-month timeframe was collected and thematically analyzed.

Exploring Hospitals' Use of Facebook: Thematic Analysis.

Background: Although health care organizations such as hospitals and clinics have widely embraced social media as a means to educate the community on health topics and increase patient loyalty and satisfaction, little is known about the content these organizations actually share when using social media channels.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the types of content US hospitals post on their Facebook pages and how hospitals' Facebook activities differ with regard to content types.

Methods: We collected and thematically analyzed more than 1700 Facebook posts made over a 3-month period by 17 US hospitals.