RACGP enters GP-only social media space

The RACGP is the latest player to make a foray into social media

The RACGP is nearing lift-off for its new mission as a social media hub and online library with a revamped website to be launched later this month

The myRACGP dashboard will offer members quick access to the college’s vast collection of professional resources and the ability to personalise their pages to put special-interest materials at the fore.

“At the moment the RACGP website looks a bit like my backyard shed. I know what I am looking for is in there, but I cannot find it,” Sunshine Coast GP Dr Edwin Kruys told The Medical Republic. 

Dr Kruys, who is part of the working group behind the digital makeover, said all RACGP resources, guidelines and access to magazines would be at the fingertips of members.

“We will also introduce widgets where doctors can customise their starting page to reflect their needs or the needs of their practice or their community. So, if you do a lot of women’s health, for example, you can put those resources on your personalised screen,” he said.

Similarly, the technology would permit fine-tuning of announcements and news, so that members in different states would receive notices relevant to their areas.

The website will also act as a springboard to shareGP, a secure online environment where GPs can post blogs, work together on documents, conduct faculty board business or just shoot the breeze with colleagues.

Dr Kruys said shareGP would be a “typical business Facebook” format, with ground rules on respectful communications and confidentiality, but content would not be subject to the prying eyes of college administrators.

However the new dashboard would offer easy means of communicating with the college, to renew memberships and check on CPD points.

Although the official launch was still weeks away, five or six GPs were already blogging on shareGP and an influx of enthusiastic registrars were getting it rolling.

Another prolific GP blogger, Dr Justin Coleman, said the online medical community had blossomed in the space of a few years.

“I’d say it’s now a very natural way for like-minded GPs to connect with each other. Less than three years ago it was quite unusual for doctors to have a social media profile,” the Brisbane GP said.

Far from being a time bandit, online access to information discovered by peers brought greater efficiency, he said.

“I have discovered a whole treasure trove of younger GPs who have never had a publishing contract, who I’ve never heard of, who are very smart at cutting to the core and finding evidence and interesting articles.”

The new site will be launched officially at GP16, the RACGP’s annual conference to be held in Perth at the end of September.