Liked, loved, shared: What got physicians talking this year

Gun violence. The fight for gender equity. Physician burnout. Heartbreak at the border. These are among the issues that got people talking and sharing on social media in 2018. In a timely way, the AMA set forth physicians’ views, tools and resources on these and other hot-button topics. Learn about the big moments that struck a chord with patients and physicians on social media.

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Let’s start with the clear No.

1. This Facebook post highlighted survey research that sheds light on how physician burnout compares by medical specialty and drew thousands of comments, reactions and shares on the world’s most popular social media service.

Regardless of specialty, the evidence shows that what most drives physician burnout are systemic and organizational factors. The AMA offers research, practice-improvement strategies and other resources to transform your practice and address your well-being.

This highly viewed tweet laid out the stakes very simply as “What you need to know about financial planning before starting residency.”

The tweet highlighted a very timely AMA news article, “Financial planning for residency: 3 take-home points,” and earned the most views.

This International Women’s Day tweet struck a responsive chord with readers by foreseeing a day when gender equity is the standard.

The tweet highlighted the results of an AMA survey about female physicians’ top concerns and was our most popular in the sense that it drew the most engagement of any kind from readers.

A powerful statement from Bobby Mukkamala, MD, an AMA Trustee, rightly earned lots of attention from physicians and other readers concerned about the family-separation crisis at the U.S. border.

This widely shared AMA tweet featured Dr. Mukkamala’s quote: “Children leaving the chaos of their home countries should not be further traumatized by the U.S. government policy of separating children from their caregiver. It’s inhumane and risks scarring children for the rest of their lives.”

At the 2018 AMA Annual Meeting in Chicago, the AMA House of Delegates adopted policy opposing the immigration-enforcement practice.

This post marking Dr. Patrice Harris’ historic election was our biggest hit on Instagram.

Dr. Harris, a psychiatrist, is the first black woman to hold the office of AMA president-elect. She will be inaugurated as AMA president in June 2019.

This is the tweet that landed the most click-throughs in 2018, and it is no surprise given its compelling topic. “Physician burnout in the U.S. is an epidemic, and most physicians (yes, even the ones you know), are likely suffering from #burnout too,” the tweet says.

The AMA news story link featured, “Every doctor you’ve admired has dealt with burnout,” showcases the burnout stories of six of America’s most accomplished physicians.

A post on gun violence that launched a Twitter thread drew more “likes” than any other AMA tweet in 2018. The tweet—posted in connection with the March for Our Lives gun-violence protests—drew upon a column by AMA Immediate Past President David O. Barbe, MD, MHA that was written in the wake of the  Parkland, Florida, massacre. It featured his quote, “We are talking about a public health crisis that our Congress has failed to properly address. This must end.”