AMA to Docs: Be Careful About What You Post Online

The American Medical Association has adopted a series of recommendations to help physicians keep their online presence appropriate and professional.

The new policy warns that physicians should "recognize that actions online and content posted may negatively affect their reputations among patients and colleagues, may have consequences for their medical careers" -- especially for medical students and residents -- and may even undermine public trust in the profession. The policy encourages doctors to use privacy settings on social networking sites such as Facebook and to routinely monitor their own online presence in order to ensure that the information on various sites is accurate and appropriate. It further encourages doctors to consider keeping personal information separate from professional content online. The new policy also addresses the importance of maintaining appropriate patient-physician boundaries, "in accordance with professional ethical guidelines just as they would in any other context."