Use of Social Media as a Platform for Education and Support for People With Diabetes During a Global Pandemic



Thomas, Rebecca L, Alabraba, Victoria, Barnard, Sam, Beba, Hannah, Brake, Julie, Cox, Alison, Bowker, Rachael, Edwards, Donna, Epps, Amanda, Fletcher-Salt, Tamsin
et al (show 9 more authors) (2023) Use of Social Media as a Platform for Education and Support for People With Diabetes During a Global Pandemic. JOURNAL OF DIABETES SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, 17 (2). pp. 353-363.

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Abstract

<h4>Background</h4>Patient education is a fundamental aspect of self-management of diabetes. The aim of this study was to understand whether a social media platform is a viable method to deliver education to people with diabetes and understand if people would engage and interact with it.<h4>Methods</h4>Education sessions were provided via 3 platforms in a variety of formats. "Tweetorials" and quizzes were delivered on the diabetes101 Twitter account, a virtual conference via Zoom and video presentations uploaded to YouTube. Audience engagement during and after the sessions were analyzed using social media metrics including impressions and engagement rate using Twitter analytics, Tweepsmap, and YouTube Studio.<h4>Results</h4>A total of 22 "tweetorial" sessions and 5 quizzes with a total of 151 polls (both in tweetorial and quiz sessions) receiving a total of 21,269 votes took place. Overall, the 1-h tweetorial sessions gained 1,821,088 impressions with an engagement rate of 6.3%. The sessions received a total of 2,341 retweets, 2,467 replies and 10,060 likes. The quiz days included 113 polls receiving 16,069 votes. The conference covered 8 topics and was attended live by over 100 people on the day. The video presentations on YouTube have received a total of 2,916 views with a watch time of 281 h and 8,847 impressions.<h4>Conclusion</h4>Despite the limitations of social media, it can be harnessed to provide relevant reliable information and education about diabetes allowing people the time and space to learn at their own pace.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: diabetes, education, peer support, self-management, social media
Divisions: Faculty of Health and Life Sciences
Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Life Courses and Medical Sciences
Depositing User: Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited: 10 Feb 2023 09:58
Last Modified: 04 Apr 2023 07:27
DOI: 10.1177/19322968211054862
Open Access URL: https://doi.org/10.1177/19322968211054862
Related URLs:
URI: https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3168332