When it comes to hospitals engaging with patients and their families on the social web, too many are concerned with justifying the efforts. But a recent blog post from Ragan Communications suggests that’s the wrong strategy completely:

How do hospitals measure their social media ROI? Are they simply tilting at windmills like Don Quixote? Too often, we find ourselves counting the number of Facebook fans or Twitter followers or the number of people who viewed You Tube videos, trying to justify engagement in social media.

However, the bigger question is whether hospitals can afford not to engage.

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Gone are the days when health care marketers were full-time professional storytellers — focused on how best to package stories and engaged in one-way conversations.

Today, storytelling is just a part of the job of health care marketers. With the rise of social media, health care marketers must be focused on facilitating conversations and sharing information.

Clearly, 2009 was a year of new beginnings for the health care industry — particularly in regards to the acceptance of social media channels like Twitter. But as we move into 2010, will that acceptance shrink, remain stagnant or skyrocket?

We don’t have a health care Twitter crystal ball. But we do have an interview with Phil Baumann, registered nurse and author, by HCPLive. Baumann shared with HCPLive his predictions for the future of Twitter for health care marketing:

For health care organizations first embarking on a social media strategy, there’s no definitive formula for what works and what doesn’t work. Perhaps the greatest tool health care organizations have for developing a social media strategy are others’ success stories.

The Significant Science blog recently interviewed John Sharp of Cleveland Clinic, which has successfully rolled out a social media strategy that includes blogging, microblogging and participation on other social networking sites.

Here’s what Sharp had to say about the stakeholders within healthcare organizations that should be involved in launching social media efforts:

60 million consumers now using social media to share their health experiences online, according to recent health care social media research by the HealthCare New Media Marketing Conference. it’s no wonder that more and more hospitals are trying to determine ways to effectively leverage social media channels.

And with Twitter being one of the fastest growing social media tools of recent years, it’s a good place for hospitals to start.

For hospitals unsure of how to use Twitter to reach health consumers, SMUG (Social Media University, Global) blogger Lee Aase provides some examples of how hospitals have been using Twitter.

If you think health care consumers haven’t widely embraced social media to research health care providers, gather information on treatments and diseases, and support one another, think again.

This health care social media video, created by the organizers of the HealthCare New Media Marketing Conference, offers a host of interesting statistics that prove the use of online media outlets for gaining access to health care information.

Did you know?

• 60 million consumers now use new media to share their health experiences online
• 216 US hospitals use social media
• 142 US hospitals have You Tube channels

It was the perfect storm: As social media sites were gaining in popularity, health care was becoming more expensive and doctors’ time was becoming more finite and valuable.

It was only a matter of time before patients and their families began turning to health care social networks for medical information and even emotional support.

The Wall Street Journal discusses the trend in an insight article:

Online health sites have been booming in the past five years … Many of the sites have recently experienced heavy traffic from users seeking information on the H1N1 virus. Officials of the Health 2.0 Conference, which tracks the industry, estimate that the number of such sites climbed to nearly 500 from about 35 four years ago.

Social networking for doctors is quickly gaining popularity. Doctors across the country are using social networking tools to give patients’ families, as well as the public, an eye into operating rooms, according to a recent Miami Herald article.

In an effort to educate the public on medical procedures and calm the fears of patients’ families, doctors are providing real-time updates and videos illustrating step-by-step medical procedures.

The article shares an example of social networking for doctors:

In the waiting room, the patient’s family members circled a Blackberry. About every 15 minutes, Dr. Carlos Wolf of Miami Plastic Surgery gave them a few keystrokes of information about how the patient was doing.

Too many Americans find themselves too busy to be healthy. Parents, more concerned with providing care for their children and elderly parents, fail to see a doctor when they’re feeling under the weather. Others put in extra hours at the office instead of the gym. A recent article in Fast Company predicts that, going forward, health care needs will be better met through increased use of networked devices and social networking platforms.

To illustrate, the article tells the story of a typical working mother, overwhelmingly busy and often unable to address her own health:

It’s clear that business leaders in a range of industries have come to embrace social media channels, including Twitter, to communicate with customers, manage brand reputation and increase brand visibility. But are healthcare executives lagging?

That’s a question Pharma 2.0 bloggers Bunny Ellerin and Eileen O’Brien ask in a recent post:

Tweeting is fast becoming a must-do vs. a what-are-you-doing for business generally and CEO’s in particular. Just last week Twitter published Twitter 101, a guide to help businesses leverage the service. Last month, BusinessWeek ran an article about business leaders who use Twitter and profiled 50 CEO’s from a range of industries. There was definitely an over-representation of tech CEO’s, but BW also talked to those from advertising/pr, construction, research, media, retail. But none in healthcare.