The humans of family medicine

Context: Primary care providers in Milwaukee are surrounded by a diverse community, often hearing stories of overcoming adversity. Celebrating patients’ and staffs’ successes are part of what makes medicine so rewarding. The concept of Humans of Family Medicine (HFM) stems from the Instagram account Humans of New York, which highlights the stories of everyday people in NYC.

Objective: The purpose of our study was to highlight and share unique patient and staff stories in hopes of bringing a humanitarian side to family medicine.

Study Design: Quality improvement.

Setting: Milwaukee, WI, USA.

Population: Patients and staff from urban family medicine clinics.

Intervention: We conducted a quality improvement project at two family medicine clinics within Milwaukee during 2019. The project was approved by our local IRB. Consent was obtained from patients and staff who agreed to have their story told. The stories were written and then vetted by our social media team, before being published on institutional social media accounts. Family medicine providers and staff were surveyed before and after the project to gauge use of social media. Pre/post-survey responses were compared with Fisher Exact Tests. P≤0.05 was considered significant.

Outcome measures: The stories and their outcome on social media platforms.

Results: A total of 25 individuals were asked to participate and share their story; 1 declined. Overall, 24 stories were written; 18 have been published (3 on Facebook (FB) alone, and 15 on both Instagram and FB). Of the 24 stories, 12 were patients, 10 were staff, and 2 were resident physicians. Mean FB likes were 485 (range 75-1155) and mean IG were 96 (range 45-490). Mean FB comments were 33 (range 3-173) and mean IG were 5 (range 0-56). Family medicine providers and staff (N=23 pre-survey; N=28 post-survey) were significantly more likely to follow our institution on FB following project implementation (P=0.005). Also, providers and staff were significantly more likely to think it was a good idea to showcase stories on social media following the project (P≤0.001). Those surveyed initially were unsure patients would like their stories showcased (36% yes would like). However, 82% thought patients would like being showcased on social media following the project (P=0.001).

Conclusion: Storytelling is powerful. Showcasing stories about those we serve is something our patients may enjoy, and it may allow us to be better caregivers, listeners, and people.