School of Dental Medicine Social Media Guidelines

The following guidelines apply to all members of the UB School of Dental Medicine community, including students, residents, faculty, staff and other workforce members.

• Use of personal mobile devices in clinical areas is explicitly prohibited, as outlined in the Clinic Manual.
• You must never disclose protected health information (PHI) on social media. Per the Clinic Manual, “Voluntarily allowing or participating in inappropriate dissemination or confidential patient information” is considered unethical and unacceptable behavior.
• All members of the SDM community are expected to follow standards of patient privacy and confidentiality, adhering to regulations outlined in HIPAA and FERPA.

Photos taken in health care environments can expose both you and the university to HIPAA violations. You may personally face a HIPAA violation if your post contains enough details for patients to recognize themselves.

You do not have permission to take or share photos of subjects and interiors of private spaces, which include the properties and buildings of partner institutions and hospitals. Partners include, but are not limited to:

• Erie County Medical Center
• Kaleida Health Group
• Mercy Hospital of Buffalo
• Golisano Children’s Hospital
• Roswell Park Comprehensive Care Center
• Veterans Affairs Western New York Health Care System
• School Districts

If you would like to coordinate photography of activity happening in clinical spaces, such as events or a guest speaker, please contact Edward Morrison for support.

Please note the following key guidelines regarding social media use when social media activity intersects with your professional responsibilities or affiliation with the University at Buffalo and School of Dental Medicine:

• Members of the School of Dental Medicine are expected to uphold applicable standards of professional and ethical conduct.
• Students, faculty and staff are expected to exercise sound professional judgment and consider their role and responsibilities when determining what to post on social media.
• Do not use defamatory, vulgar, libelous or potentially inflammatory language. Avoid content that implies disrespect for any individual or group based on various characteristics.
• Faculty and staff have a responsibility to maintain appropriate professional boundaries with students. Social media activity involving students should reflect the same respect, discretion and professional judgment expected in interactions as a teacher, mentor, supervisor, advisor or evaluator. 
• Individuals are solely responsible for their social media content. Violations of applicable university and UBSDM policies may lead to legal or disciplinary actions. 

• Avoid interacting with current or past patients through social media. Do not provide medical or dental advice through these platforms.
• Sharing a patient’s post, engaging with it (i.e., liking and commenting) can expose PHI and lead to privacy breaches. Even well-intended engagement can constitute a breach.
• The UBSDM official accounts may post pictures of patients from time to time. In these instances, photo releases have been secured. You can interact with these posts without causing a breach. 
• UB Dental - Notice of Patient Privacy

• All members of the school community should respect the privacy and confidentiality of students, residents, faculty, staff and colleagues. Do not disclose confidential or sensitive information, including protected academic, educational, personnel or employment information.
• Always consider applicable privacy requirements, permissions, university policies and professional context in which an interaction occurred before sharing identifiable information.
• Faculty and staff should use care when posting about or interacting on social media with students whom they teach, supervise, mentor, advise or evaluate.
• Before posting any content involving a member of the UBSDM community, consider the nature of your professional relationship with the individual and whether the content could compromise privacy, professional boundaries or institutional policies. 

Be mindful of the distinction between personal expression and communication on behalf of the UBSDM and UB.

• Faculty or staff who use social media accounts in connection with their university roles should clearly identify their UB affiliation and distinguish their personal views from official university positions, consistent with UB’s Employee Social Media Guidance.
• Employees using personal social media accounts should be mindful that identifying their UB affiliation may cause audiences to associate their posts with the university or UBSDM.
• Personal accounts should not use UB logos or marks in ways that could reasonably suggest that the account officially represents the university.
• Do not misrepresent yourself as an official representative of the university, school, or partner institution unless authorized to serve in that capacity. Only individuals authorized to represent the UBSDM or university should post or respond on an official university social media account. This content represents the university, rather than an individual’s point of view. 

Before posting content involving the school, patients, students, colleagues or your professional affiliation, ask yourself:

• Does this protect patient, student, and employee privacy?
• Does this content contain HIPAA-protected information (PHI)?
• Was this photo taken in a clinical setting?
• Is the content appropriate given my professional role and relationship with the individuals involved?
• Does this reflect the professional judgment expected of a member of the UBSDM community?
• Could someone reasonably interpret this as speaking on behalf of the school or university?

These guidelines are designed to ensure that your engagement on social media reflects positively on the UBSDM and UB while protecting the privacy and interests of patients and the university.  Always use social media responsibly and professionally.

These lists highlight some but not all issues surrounding the use of social media in health care environments and communication.