Exploring the Meanings of Collaborative Healthcare Portrayed in Social Media

Abstract

This article aims to provide knowledge on how collaborative healthcare meanings are being portrayed in social media. Through a qualitative approach of visual and textual analysis, 750 posts were extracted from Instagram to examine the meanings of collaborative healthcare as perceived by healthcare providers and laypeople. Wellness centers and health-related professionals were the main Instagram users who contributed to constructing the meaning of collaborative healthcare (38% and 36%, respectively). The study reveals four main categories within the concept of collaborative healthcare, namely knowledge sharing, events, self-care, and advertising. Interestingly, we found that advertising has the highest frequency (314 posts) and that the term “collaborative” is used by wellness centers as a hallmark for advertising their services. Conclusion and Implications: This study has contributed to unveiling the multiple meanings of collaborative healthcare shared by social media users and to developing some theoretical reflections and practical implications to improve public health.