Social Media Networking Techniques for Nursing Professionals
Dec 30, 2014 | 9:00 am
As a nursing professional, it can be challenging trying to find ways to advertise marketable skills when searching for a new job opportunity. Sites like CareerBuilder.com and others provide a great start to online job search, but there are quite a few online avenues that are either forgotten or never used due to lack of awareness. One of the best and most promising of these online options is the use of social media to promote a resume or build a network of like-minded professionals for future job opportunities.
The proper use of social media networking for a nursing professional has the potential to open several doors as far as future career options. With the current availability of quite a few different social media sites, the sky is the limit for individuals who know how to use social media to their advantage. However, in order to take full advantage of all there is to offer on social media sites, a nursing professional must first understand the proper techniques to use when dealing with this kind of online avenue.
Probably the most prominent and well-known social media outlet currently available for nursing professional networking is Facebook. Every man, woman, and child has either created a Facebook account or will eventually. Facebook has become the eyes and ears of everything from law enforcement to job seekers.
For that reason, nursing professionals have a great opportunity to market their skills on Facebook groups, by contacting like-minded healthcare professionals, and by making it known on Facebook that the individual is seeking a new position. Use of any of these techniques can provide job leads or potentially important contacts for future job openings.
LinkedIn is a fantastic resource for social media networking. Nursing professionals in the market for a new or higher-level job can use LinkedIn to network with employers and other healthcare professionals all over the country. LinkedIn was designed strictly as an online networking tool and for that reason, it is highly effective when used the right way.
Nursing professionals who want to use LinkedIn as their sole-networking tool needs to make sure they create a dynamic profile and highlight their skills and capabilities. Employers use LinkedIn profiles as a starting point for potential hires and without a dynamic profile, it can be hard to stand out from the pack.
Privacy, Safety, and Personal Information
Anytime a healthcare professional uses social media for networking, there are some concerns regarding privacy, safety, and personal information. For that reason, it is important that any nursing professional who chooses to use social media as a networking platform be aware of the potential risks involved. First and foremost, remember HIPAA laws.
Never post anything on social media that may violate HIPAA or divulge a patient’s information, even when searching for a new job. The same goes for personal information not relevant to a job search for the nursing professional on the hunt. The only information a potential employer is concerned with has to do with job skills and training. Personal information and preferences can often harm a job search rather than help one and for a nursing professional seeking a new job, that is the last thing anyone wants to happen.