A tweet chat is a live and hosted Twitter discussion held at a set time, focused on a prearranged topic & with a # to bind together the conversation…
Tweet chats are a fast and interactive way to share knowledge and experience, and learn from other people – physiotherapists, allied health professionals, nurses, doctors and patient leaders.
Regular healthcare tweet chats also include #WeNurses; #WeParamedics, #WePharmacists, #OTalk, #nhssm and #patientleaders.
Here are some tips for taking part in a physiotalk (or other) tweet chat:
Before:
- Join Twitter if you haven’t already! There’s also lots of useful information from the Twitter support centre.
- Look out for chats being publicised on Twitter and our Facebook page, or follow our blog for updates into you inbox
- Read through the pre-chat information and think about anything you would like to ask or share, including links to useful websites or documents.
During:
- You can take part in a tweet chat from a phone, tablet or computer, but sometimes phones and mobile connections can be too slow so computers often work best, especially if you are planning to get involved in the discussion
- Join the chat by searching for and clicking on #physiotalk or the agreed chat. The # for the chat is what ‘binds’ it together and filters out other Twitter conversation at the time – it enables everyone taking part to follow the conversation – so use the agreed # in all your tweets during the discussion
- You don’t have to tweet, you can just follow the conversation, especially if you are still getting used to tweet chats. You might like to introduce yourself, using the #, and mention that you’ll be there watching and listening
- The chat will be hosted and the host will ask questions along the way to stimulate discussion and sharing of ideas
- Some tweet chats can be fast moving so don’t worry if you can’t keep up, and you can use the # to read through the conversation at your own pace afterwards and we TweetDeck is useful to keep track of the discussions – click here for our page on using TweetDeck to keep up with chats
- Remember- tweet with professionalism during the chat, for example guidance on social media from the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) and the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP).
After:
- You can look through the post chat information afterwards for a summary of what was discussed and any additional links, and this can also be useful if you missed the chat. The post-chat information will normally be available the same day.
- You can also reflect on the chat and what you learned or need to find out more about as part of your CPD (see PhysioTalk and your CPD).
