Social media has changed the way the general public accesses health information [1]. With the increasing use of handheld mobile devices, health information may be readily available to an even larger public, as seen in the United States [2]. Facebook, the social media tool with the widest active user base, has 1.28 billion users as of March 31, 2014 [3]. Health information is distributed and discussed on many social media tools, and one in five Americans uses social media as a source of health care information [4]. Of Facebook users in the United States, 94% have used Facebook to gather information on their health [4].
However, user-generated health content on social media is generally inconsistent with clinical guidelines and professional knowledge, and non-biased information can be difficult to obtain [5]. Publicly funded services and institutes have a limited role in distributing health information on social media [6], possibly due to a lack of models for using social media in health information promotion [7,8]. In Finland, information on child health is traditionally delivered by “well-baby” clinics, which offer both general information on health care and address individual needs. At the moment, most of the information is delivered during patient visits and by telephone consultation. The clinics are understaffed with regard to the national recommendations, and this is reflected in their capacity to deliver health information [9]. It is evident that methods to reach a larger population are needed to meet the demand. As in the United States, although no such data exist, it is likely that the use of social media for seeking health information is increasing also in Finland. Stroever et al [10] found that social media was an effective way to communicate child health information to low-income parents. Furthermore, the information was considered reliable if distributed by perceived experts.
Originally Published in JMIR
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