Utilizing the Tool of Tiktok in Medicine, Public Health, and Medical Education
Year: 2023
Type: article
Abstract: The branch of medicine continues to expand with each day and it becomes a major challenge for the physicians to stay abreast with the developments. The purpose of the current review is to explore the role of the TikTok application in improving medical education and healthcare delivery services. An extensive search of all materials related to the topic was carried out on the PubMed search engine between April 20, 2022 and May 24, 2022, and a total of 49 articles were selected based upon their suitability with the current review objectives. As single search engine was used, there were no duplication and search was performed by a single investigator. The inclusion criteria included availability of complete version of the articles and those articles published in only English language. Keywords used in the search include TikTok and medicine in the title alone only (viz. TikTok [ti] AND medical education [ti]; TikTok [ti] AND content [ti]; TikTok [ti] AND COVID-19 [ti]; TikTok [ti] AND misinformation [ti]; TikTok [ti] AND video [ti]; TikTok [ti]). It was a non-funded study and the review was not registered. TikTok has emerged as one of the very popular video sharing applications, and has been extensively used to share videos pertaining to medicine, and public health-related topics. The application has been used in different parts of the world to post content pertaining to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), handwashing, promotion of community engagement, nutrition, vaccine, autism, climate health, eating disorders, stress & anxiety, etc. Like any other social media application, even TikTok has its share of constraints, and these need to be carefully dealt with to enhance the overall effectiveness of the app. To conclude, the TikTok application has brought about significant reforms in social media networking. However, considering the fact that the application appeals to users from all streams, it is the need of the hour to explore and use the app for augmenting the healthcare delivery, improve management of public health problems, and facilitate better delivery of medical education.
Language: English
Subfield: Health
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4402075652