Visibility Versus Privacy of Physicians in the Age of Social Media

As access to the internet has grown over the years, social media has become an important resource in the health care sector. Third-party physician-rating websites in particular have gained popularity. However, there are ethical implications of such websites. These websites provide a platform for patients to evaluate and review physicians and likewise increase visibility and advertisement of physicians, but they also violate the rights to privacy that these doctors should have. This paper aims to study and assess the ethical implications of these websites on the visibility and privacy of physicians. After presenting the ethical dilemma associated with such websites, it provides guidelines that can be incorporated by both physicians and third-party sites to help maintain physician privacy while providing public service in the form of advertisement and visibility.