Nurse director urges nurses to embrace social media

Nurses should embrace social media because it can generate debate, inform them about new research and expose them to new ideas, a senior mental health nurse has said.

Derek Barron, associate nurse director for mental health at North Ayrshire Health and Social Care Trust, praised the WeNurses Twitter group, which has 35,500 followers and holds weekly Twitter exchanges on nursing issues, and said many nurses within his organisation have formed groups on Facebook to exchange views.

‘Nurses can share best practice, national strategies and training tips using social media,’ said Mr Barron. ‘Writing a blog is a good way to get debates going, and there are apps that send the latest research in your area direct to your phone.’

He added: ‘You need to remember that everything you say is going to be made public. But, if you follow that rule, then nurses should embrace social media and not be afraid of it.’

Mr Barron is giving a presentation on the benefits of social media at the Community Practitioners’ and Health Visitors’ Association conference in Manchester in November.

Click here to read his blog