Social Networking and Medical Professionalism

Medical professionalism encompasses the conduct and practices of physicians, both as individuals and as a collective organization. Professionalism enhances the trust and confidence of patients and society in doctors. For a profession that deals with decision making in an environment fraught with medical uncertainty and information asymmetry between the doctor and the patient, a reasonable degree of trust held by patients that medical practitioners will act in their best interests is critical. But the fiduciary nature of this relationship has come under increasing pressure as the rapid advance in information technology threatens to revolutionize the mode of engagement between patients and doctors, thereby presenting new challenges to the traditional boundaries of the doctor-patient relationship.