Physicians: Want Streaming Glory? Know These Legal Tips

A dermatologist talks on YouTube about sunscreens, retinols, tinea versicolor, and eczema. A plastic surgeon critiques the restorative work that celebrities have had. A urologist talks about supplements that can boost sexual performance. A gynecologist talks about menopause on TikTok.

Carolyn Buppert, MSN, JD

A physician has a podcast about performance, longevity, critical thinking, and pursuing excellence. Another gives tips for better sleep. Two clinicians discuss how to manage patients with angina. The upsides of sharing expertise in a YouTube or TikTok video or in a podcast include educating the community, gaining recognition for one's expertise, attracting patients, making money from ad sales and sponsorships, and getting free stuff from manufacturers.

"Social media is your way of connecting the people you want to reach with good information… Social media is not the be all, end all. It is one arrow in your quiver, but it is a key arrow to use to achieve the triple aim of providing high-quality care to ensure population health at a reasonable cost," said attorney David Harlow in Best Doctors' "Physicians should be using social media: A legal perspective".

The AMA says: "Participating in social networking and other similar opportunities can support physicians' personal expression, enable individual physicians to have a professional presence online, foster collegiality and camaraderie within the profession, and provide opportunities to widely disseminate public health messages and other health communication." The AMA cautions that physicians maintaining a presence online should protect patient confidentiality and privacy and be mindful of boundaries, as one would in in-person medical practice. For more on the AMA's cautions, see