Although 66% of online American adults use social networking sites, according to a 2012 Pew Internet Project study, many users remain skeptical about using social media for professional purposes. To demonstrate some of the potential benefits of social media, APTA hosted an online roundtable discussion Monday with 5 physical therapists and 1 student of physical therapy, all of whom actively use Twitter and other social media tools to network about physical therapy issues.

The 53-minute discussion, conducted using Google+ Hangouts and archived via YouTube, covers the weekly #SolvePT tweetchat, ways that social media are effective in advocacy efforts, benefits of social media for physical therapy educators and students, and the challenges of discussing critical issues in a social media environment, among other topics.

Participating in the panel were Allan Besselink, PT, Dip MDT, Christopher Bise, PT, DPT, MS, OCS, physical therapist student Matt DeBole, Selena Horner, PT, MS, GCS, Eric Robertson, PT, DPT, OCS, and Ann Wendel, PT, ATC, CMTPT.

The roundtable is available on the Social Media Tips & Best Practices webpage of APTA.org, which includes links to APTA's policy on social media, a new video tutorial for Twitter, and other resources.