| Social media are ubiquitous and used by millions of people every day. Existing research on social media is primarily descriptive, survey based, and focused on who is using social media and how people and organizations are using the tools. Although many organizations have shown interest in using social media, they often demonstrate uncertainty about the most effective use of social media to serve organizational needs. Distinctly missing from the literature is a framework that can help practitioners in organizations, specifically hospitals, to understand social media as a potentially creative and productive tool to guide the organization through its implementation in order to improve performance. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to use an interpretive design methodology (S. B. Merriam, Qualitative Research: A Guide to Design and Implementation, 2009) to discover and document the recent successes, challenges, and potential of social media recently implemented in hospitals. The researcher used the performance improvement/human performance technology (HPT) model (D. M. Van Tiem, J. L. Moseley, & J. C. Dessinger, Fundamentals of Performance Improvement, 2012) as a framework to survey people who are familiar with the use of social media in healthcare. The data analysis determined the extent to which practitioners in hospitals used key elements of the HPT model (e.g., analysis, design, development, implementation, maintenance, evaluation, and change management) when the organization attempted to adopt social media. The researcher determined that some organizations begin using social media tools without thinking through what the impact will be on the organization, workers, and customers. The results of this study demonstrated that organizations were using some components of the HPT model but would likely improve performance outcomes, reliability, and success by more intentionally using the research-based HPT model as a framework for planning and implementation. |
