Should Doctors Blog?

There are some professionals who might be walking on thin ice when it comes to blogging, including doctors, attorneys and anyone else who’s privy to confidential information. As a physician or any other professional in the healthcare field, you have to abide by HIPAA laws, but that doesn’t mean you can’t be a successful blogger. There are many top-ranked bloggers with MDs who use these platforms to connect with patients and dish out their best expert advice.

In particular, locum doctors are great candidates to become bloggers. Since they temporarily fill in for position (they’re basically the substitute teachers of the medical world), their schedule is more flexible to allow for quality blogging and they’re constantly in new environments. Unlike those in a family practice, this provides plenty of new material on a rolling basis. Not all doctors are cut out for blogging, but here are a few signs it might be good for you (and your patients).

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Closing the gap

Many doctors have been complaining in recent years that they’re drowning in paperwork, which makes it nearly impossible to spend quality face to face time with patients. However, with a blog you can delve deeper into common issues, such as that flu going around or best practices for summer skin health. It gives you a platform to not just dispense advice, but also connect with others in the community and your patients. Since you don’t have to blog at an exact time, you have more freedom to use your expertise for good.

This can be particularly beneficial for doctors who are working on making a name for themselves in their field, or for those who are gearing up for a big change such as starting their own practice. If you’re required to publish, as is the case with many physicians in hospitals, blogs can also be a rich ground for information, ideas and even the beginning stages of research.

Best blog practices

Your schedule might be hectic, but that’s no excuse for ignoring the best practices for blogs. For example, you need a clean layout that’s accessible on any mobile device, regular blogs (three to five per week if not daily) and you also need to run regular reports to see how it’s performing. Are some posts much more popular than others? Learn from them and craft future posts around them.

Blogging isn’t easy, especially if your goal is to monetize it or become a top ranked blogger. However, for doctors it can be a great communication tool.