This document discusses developing and maintaining a digital identity and presence. It emphasizes regularly checking your privacy settings on social media, considering separate personal and professional profiles, and avoiding inappropriate posts that could affect your studies or career. It also recommends setting boundaries with technology to manage digital distractions, including setting times to limit notifications and disconnect from devices.

1. Taking Pride in your
Digital Presence
By AllanTheophanides

2. What is this session all about?
Knowledge
Awareness
Understanding
Best Practice

3. Your digital identity
“A digital identity is information used to represent persons,
organisations, or machines in information systems and networks.
The term digital identity has three distinct senses: computational,
legal and social.”
Wikipedia, (2015). Digital identity. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_identity [Accessed 22 Sep. 2015].

4. The social sense
“In the social sense, digital identity refers to any collection of
information that describes a person, and which was generated
by that person’s online activity. In this sense a digital identity is
the online version of an individual’s personal, or social, identity.”
Wikipedia, (2015). Digital identity. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_identity [Accessed 22 Sep. 2015].

5. IdentifyingYOUR identity!
 Whether you realise it or not, Google provides the most open
and easily accessible digital identity that anyone can look at.
 Most importantly you cannot change it easily!
TASK 1: On your device leave the PollEverywhere page for the
moment and just ‘Google’ yourself. Please use both text and
images searches and let us know what you find!

6. Social networking in the UK

7. SocialTools

8. The national consensus

9. Check your privacy!
 Given that Facebook is the most widely used social
networking tool in the UK it is more than likely that your
peers and patients will be using it too.
 Consequently it is always worth checking how your profile
looks to not only your friends, but also the public.

10. Check your privacy!
 You might be fresher students here to study hard…
…but would you trust this guy with your health?
FLOZIM. Boozer. 4th Sept 2008. https://www.flickr.com/photos/flowizm/2827746964 [Accessed 23rd Sept.
2015]
and possibly party harder…

11. Check your privacy!
 Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn are much easier to check your
public identity just by search online.
 Privacy settings are also much easier to organise.
 Don’t completely rely on privacy settings, things can change
without notice.
 Simple rule of thumb…just try not to make comments or
posts that your family or a prospective employer would find
inappropriate. That way you avoid the risk.

12. Professional or personal profiles
 Facebook only generally allows you to setup a single account under
your identity and can randomly close down duplicates.
 Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, etc. allow you to create multiple
accounts enabling you to maintain one for personal updates and
the other for professional
 Decide whether you would like to have a separate account for you
academic and professional identity now, it’s harder to implement
later down the line after a year or two studying.
 Remember that although mobile apps allow for ease of access and
posting updates, they don’t allow for multiple accounts. So if you
have split profiles, please remember where you are posting to!

13. Professionalism or paranoia?
“Doctors’ use of social media can benefit patient care by:
a. engaging people in public health and policy discussions
b. establishing national and international professional networks
c. facilitating patients’ access to information about health and
services.”
General Medical Council. Doctors’ use of social media (2013). http://www.gmc-uk.org/guidance/ethical_guidance/21186.asp [Accessed 23rd Sept 2015]

14. Professional responsibility
“Respect for colleagues
15. Good medical practice says that doctors must treat colleagues
fairly and with respect. This covers all situations and all forms of
interaction and communication.You must not bully, harass or make
gratuitous, unsubstantiated or unsustainable comments about
individuals online.
16.When interacting with or commenting about individuals or
organisations online, you should be aware that postings online are
subject to the same laws of copyright and defamation as written or
verbal communications, whether they are made in a personal or
professional capacity.”
General Medical Council. Doctors’ use of social media (2013). http://www.gmc-uk.org/guidance/ethical_guidance/21186.asp [Accessed 23rd Sept 2015]

15. Professional Networking
 Social networks such as LinkedIn and Meducation exist to
facilitate professionally focused discussion and collaboration.
 GMC support the use of social media to improve patient
communication
 Whatever social media you use think twice about accepting a
patient friend request, especially to your personal networks:
“If a patient contacts you about their care or other professional
matters through your private profile, you should indicate that
you cannot mix social and professional relationships and, where
appropriate, direct them to your professional profile.”
General Medical Council. Doctors’ use of social media (2013). http://www.gmc-uk.org/guidance/ethical_guidance/21186.asp [Accessed 23rd Sept 2015]

16. Digital identity; a summary…
 Google yourself and check your privacy settings regularly on any
social network tools that you use.
 Consider keeping your personal and professional profiles or posts
separate.
 Think twice about anything you post online to do with your studies
or professional practice. It may seem appropriate, but the
responses that come as a result may not be.
 If you do see anything inappropriate online posted by a colleague
and you can’t do anything about it directly, raise it with the
individual in question or escalate it.
 Ensure that you maintain the GMC recommended professional
boundaries with patients, especially when using social media.

17. Digital Distractions

18. The DigitalTemptation
 According to Ofcom’s ‘Adults’ media use and attitudes Report
2015’ people aged between 16 and 24 now spend more than
27 hours a week online at various locations, for various
purposes.
 Given that you have 5 years worth of study ahead of you, we
would like you to think how you will manage the increasing
temptation of social media, music, videos, gaming, etc.
especially when you have to go online for learning and
research?

19. Digital Responsibility
 ‘Digital Responsibility’ [http://www.digitalresponsibility.org]
was created by employees in SiliconValley to share the often
unacknowledged consequences of technology. They’re
suggestions include:
 Create a “tech blackout” day once a week.
 Set boundaries for text-free spaces and times. For instance, try
making a pact to put away mobiles during meals, car rides or a
particular hour of the evening.
 If you can’t disconnect, relocate.Try bringing your gadgets into a
shared space where you can talk to each other.
 Turn off notifications and set times to answer email or check social
media only a few times a day. Not only will this boost productivity,
but it will help you feel more in control.

20. Further Reading
 General Medical Council. Good Medical Practice -
http://www.gmc-uk.org/guidance/index.asp
 British Medical Association (2011). Using social media:
practical and ethical guidance for doctors and medical students
http://bma.org.uk/-
/media/files/pdfs/practical%20advice%20at%20work/ethics/s
ocialmediaguidance.pdf
 Cardiff University. Developing your digital presence -
http://www.scoop.it/t/developing-your-digital-presence
 Digital Responsibility. Digital Distractions -
http://www.digitalresponsibility.org/digital-distraction