Proposing a framework for a new guideline on social media usage for medical practitioners in Malaysia

During the current Coronavirus Disease (Covid-19) pandemic, social media usage has escalated. Medical practitioners use this platform to develop content, daily communications, socialise, advertise their services, and deliver health education and research. The use of social media by medical professionals poses several new ethical issues such as confidentiality and conflict of interest. They may struggle to adapt to the online environment, and they may not think about how their online posts may affect patients or the public. The medical practitioners' mistakes in creating inappropriate online content may reflect poorly on the profession. This can also potentially affect personal privacy and the traditional doctor-patient relationship. Several countries, including the UK and the Australia, have set standards for healthcare workers. Currently, in Malaysia, there are two social media guidelines for medical practitioners, called as Guidelines for the Use of Social Media among Health Care Providers and Guidelines for Monitoring the Use of Social Media among Health Care Providers and one ethical code which is Tata Etika Penggunaan Media Sosial developed by the Malaysian Ministry of Health in 2016. These guidelines and Code do not apply to private medical practitioners. Notably, both guidelines and Code have not been revised since 2016. Social media is always evolving, and it is possible that there may be some gaps in the guidelines. The Code of Professional Conduct and Good Medical Practice by the Malaysian Medical Council have guidance on social media usage but they are fragmented. As a result, medical practitioners lack guidance. Hence, a proper guideline is required to oversee both public and private medical practitioners' use of social media. Therefore, this research will discuss the loopholes of the existing governance on social media use for medical practitioners in Malaysia as well as to analyse and compare the guidelines on social media use for medical practitioners in the England and Wales, and Australia. Hence, a new framework for a new guideline can be proposed to protect the professionalism of medical practitioners and govern both public and private healthcare.