Social media in academia: Why do it?

"Why would I want to participate in Twitter and social media?"

This is a common question that I get from my fellow emergency physicians. They think that social media applications are for people who have nothing better to do than to read/write about trivial personal opinions.

This year, the Society of General Internal Medicine (SGIM) held a workshop on "From Twitter to Tenure", hosted by well-known educators in the Twitter world:

• @FutureDocs (Dr. Vineet Arora)
• @AlexSmithMD (Dr. Alex Smith) and @Ewidera (Dr. Eric Widera) from Geripal
• @Medrants (Dr. Bob Centor) 
• @MotherinMed (Dr. Kathy Chretien)

They each discussed how social media has played a positive role in their academic careers. They also posted summaries on their respective blogs:

• FutureDocsBlog
• Geripal
• Medrants
• MothersInMedicine

Bottom line: Social media develops a brand (or name) for yourself in the digital universe, forces you to constantly improve your writing, helps you build a network of potential collaborators, and opens up a world of opportunities for you.