Updated Survey of Social Media Use by Members of the American Urological Association

Introduction: We performed a more detailed, updated analysis of social media use by AUA members. Specifically we sought to characterize the frequency of and reason for using different social media platforms as well as barriers to social media use.

Methods: From November to December 2013 we sent a 21-item survey on social media use to 16,376 AUA members with a valid email address. A total of 1,114 members (6.8%) completed the survey. Responses were tallied and statistical analysis was performed to evaluate use patterns based on demographic characteristics.

Results: Overall 71% of AUA members who responded to the survey currently had a social media account. The most popular social media platform was Facebook® (89% of respondents), followed by LinkedIn® (59%), YouTube™ (54%), Twitter® (48%) and Google+™ (35%). All platforms except LinkedIn were used primarily for personal reasons. Fewer than a third of respondents had viewed an AUA social media site and 35% of physician respondents participated in a physician-only social media community. Among respondents who did not use social media the most common reasons were no perception of added value and privacy concerns.

Conclusions: Although most AUA respondents are involved in social media, they primarily use social media for personal reasons. There remains significant potential for growth and education on the usefulness of social media for urologists in the professional setting.