Regulator acts to prevent nurses and midwives getting into trouble on Facebook

Date:11/07/2011

The NMC has this week issued advice on the use of social networking sites for the UK's 660,000 registered nurses and midwives

The regulator is increasingly receiving enquiries about online conduct and improper use of Facebook in particular, which have already lead to a number of nurses and midwives being investigated and even struck off.

The NMC is taking a strong stance on online misconduct. Its advice states that online incidents are to be treated as gravely as if they had happened in the real world. It also recommends that nurses and midwives make a clear distinction between their professional and personal lives online.

NMC Chief Executive Professor Dickon Weir-Hughes said:

"The NMC is committed to public protection and ensuring nurses and midwives make the welfare of those in their care their first priority at all times.

"I would advise nurses and midwives to exercise caution when using social networking sites. They could risk their registration if they share sensitive information, make inappropriate comments, or befriend patients online."

The NMC advice on social networking includes the following suggestions:

  • Never put confidential or sensitive information on social networking sites, especially if it identifies patients.
  • Whether or not you identify your work role online, be aware that all your activity online can reflect on your professional life.
  • Don't accept friend requests from patients, or use social networks to build or pursue relationships with patients or clients, even if they are no longer in your care.
  • Do not post pictures that have patients in them.
  • Keep personal and professional social networking as separate as possible.
  • Consider everything you post as public, even in 'private' Facebook discussions.
  • Social networking sites should not be used for whistle-blowing or raising concerns – instead follow the NMC's guidance on raising and escalating concerns.
  • Don't discuss work online, and especially avoid talking about patients or colleagues.
  • Don't simply accept the preset privacy and sharing settings on Facebook, think carefully about what you want to share with different kinds of friends.
  • Remember you can take action if you find you are the target of abuse; there are options available for blocking people from interacting with you.

Andy Jaeger, NMC Assistant Director, Professional and Public Communications, and author of the social networking sites advice, said:

"Most people simply don't realise how much information is shared with the world if you don't adjust your privacy settings on Facebook – and that includes personal details and photographs.

"For instance, advertisers can often tell what films you like, what music you listen to, even your favourite chocolate. That's quite innocuous, but there are many examples of more personal content that users unwittingly share with the world.

"If your profession is nursing or midwifery, it is particularly inadvisable to discuss work issues online. What you regard as just an amusing story, could end up causing serious offence more easily than you think."

Additional resources

Andy Jaeger gave a presentation at the 2011 RCN Congress on "Facebook trials and tribulations: social networking sites and their joys and dangers".