Hospice and palliative care influencers around the world such as Jim Cleary @jfcleary, David Clark @dumfriesshire, Kate Jackson @kate_ehospice, and our very own CEO Liz Gwyther @lizhpca to name but a few, are all using Twitter as a powerful tool to encourage people from all around the world to engage in chats on twitter about issues in their country relating to hospice and palliative care.
What is a Tweetchat?
A Tweetchat is where a group of Twitter users meet at a pre-determined time to discuss a certain topic, using a selected hashtag (eg: #hpmglobal) for each tweet contributed. Searching for this hashtag will bring up all the Tweets in which it is included, so that you can follow the conversation in real time. A host or moderator will position questions to prompt responses from contributors and inspire communication among the group. Tweet chats typically last 30 minutes to an hour.
Imagine a business networking event/meeting – but without a dress code and with a keyboard instead of a notepad. The same social duties apply – courtesy and respect – and it’s a great way to meet new people with similar interests around certain topics and in this case the topic of hospice and palliative care.
Why participate in a Tweetchat?
Tweetchats provide a chance to network and grow your circle (and gain more knowledge about a specific topic) through shared interests. Through the weekly chat that is chaired by Jim Clearly every Monday with the #HPMGlobal hashtag, one goes on an journey of interest in terms of what is going on around the world with hospice, palliative care, medicines and so forth.
The Tweetchat format can be very influential in creating a sense of ‘place’ in the massive world of social media where one could so easily get lost in all the content that is out there nowadays.
Take part!
We encourage you, the reader, to participate in HPCA’s very first tweet chat. The chat will take place at 2pm South African time (12 noon GMT) on 1 March 2016. It will be co-chaired by @lizhpca, @HPCA_SA and @shaun_hpca. The chat hashtag will be #hpcachat
The topics that we are hoping to cover are:
1. What do you think is the state of palliative care in SA?
2. How is palliative care delivered in your community?
3. What are the palliative care needs for the patients you care for?
Looking forward to your participation!
Leave a Reply