In 2014 we published a list of the Most Followed #FOAMed Twitter Users (FOAM = Free Open Access Meducation). One observation, keenly pointed out by Dr. Nikita Joshi (@njoshi8), was the lack of female representation on the list. Separately, Dr. Esther Choo (@choo_ek) published a blog post entitled Women in Emergency Medicine Who Give Great Talks. As a follow up to our original post, here are the most ‘followed’ women on Twitter in the FOAM world.
We are particularly interested in understanding the landscape such as who is involved, geographic locations, areas of expertise, and association with blogs/podcasts. Our search strategy was simple:
- Twitter was searched for all users with #FOAMed, #FOAMcc, #FOAMtox, #FOAMped, #FOAMems, #FOAM4GP, and/or #FOAM in her Twitter profile. *
- This was cross-referenced with Dr. Mike Cadogan’s (@sandnsurf) FOAMed Twitter list (1,074 members as of May 8, 2015).
Most Followed FOAM Women on Twitter **
| Rank | Twitter Name | Twitter Handle | Location *** | Followers | Joined Twitter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michelle Lin | @M_Lin | San Francisco, USA | 9,917 | Apr 2009 |
| 2 | Pam Nelmes | @Pam007Nelmes | Cornwall, UK | 4,631 | Sep 2010 |
| 3 | Michelle Johnston | @Eleytherius | Perth | 4,561 | Feb 2010 |
| 4 | Natalie May | @_NMay | Manchester, United Kingdom | 4,036 | Jul 2012 |
| 5 | gas-and-air doc | @mjslabbert | RSA, UK, Toronto Canada | 3,360 | Aug 2010 |
| 6 | ER doc | @ER_doc | 3,322 | Jun 2008 | |
| 7 | Lauren Westafer | @lwestafer | New England, United States | 2,912 | Apr 2012 |
| 8 | Teresa Chan | @TChanMD | Canada (Hamilton, ON) | 2,882 | Jun 2009 |
| 9 | Natalie Lafferty | @nlafferty | Dundee, UK | 2,640 | Mar 2008 |
| 10 | ER Nurses Care | @ERnursescare | North Carolina | 2,595 | Apr 2009 |
| 11 | Deirdre Bonnycastle | @Bonnycastle | Saskatoon, Sask, Canada | 2,494 | Oct 2008 |
| 12 | Heidi Allen | @dreamingspires | Sydney, Australia | 2,443 | Oct 2008 |
| 13 | Esther Choo MD MPH | @choo_ek | 2,198 | Jan 2012 | |
| 14 | Jess | @EMS_Junkie | Australia | 2,169 | Oct 2009 |
| 15 | Nikita Joshi | @njoshi8 | California | 2,103 | Dec 2012 |
| 16 | Laleh Gharahbaghian | @SonoSpot | San Francisco/Stanford | 1,966 | May 2012 |
| 17 | Tessa Davis | @TessaRDavis | Sydney | 1,849 | Oct 2011 |
| 18 | K Dillon, RDMS, CPC | @comalliwrites | SF Bay Area, CA | 1,748 | Nov 2009 |
| 19 | Penny Wilson | @nomadicgp | Western Australia | 1,724 | Mar 2012 |
| 20 | Madhu Singh MD | @thinkalot | Pale Blue Dot | 1,645 | Mar 2009 |
| 21 | Victoria Stephen | @EMcardiac | Johannesburg, South Africa | 1,619 | Nov 2012 |
| 22 | Annalisa Manca | @AnnalisaManca | Dundee, Scotland | 1,556 | Feb 2009 |
| 23 | Eve Purdy | @purdy_eve | 1,474 | Jul 2012 | |
| 24 | Sara Ali | @TheNewbieDoctor | 1,213 | May 2010 | |
| 25 | Melanie Considine | @ruralgreengp | Rural South Australia | 1,174 | Nov 2011 |
| 26 | Petra Dolman | @petradMD | Prince George, BC, Canada | 1,156 | May 2013 |
| 27 | Shannon O. McNamara | @ShannonOMac | New York, NY | 1,100 | Jun 2009 |
| 28 | Cathi Mon | @cathimon | South Australia | 1,089 | Aug 2011 |
| 29 | Jordana Haber | @JoJoHaber | Brooklyn, NY | 959 | Mar 2012 |
| 30 | Shweta Gidwani | @Global_EM | London | 942 | Feb 2009 |
* Those without one of the FOAM hashtags in her Twitter profile are not included on this list, even if they produce excellent, free content such as Victoria Brazil (@SocraticEM), Megan Ranney, MD MPH (@meganranney), and Ash Witt (@ash_witt).
** Information current as of May 8, 2015.
*** Locations were taken directly from Twitter profiles.
Limitations
Certainly, the metric of Twitter followers does not necessarily correlate with quality, and it misses newcomers to the FOAM scene and those with a more focused area of expertise/interest.
Observations
- There is worldwide representation from Australia, Canada, the UK, South Africa, the USA, and more.
- A variety of healthcare professional representation including emergency physicians, nurses, and general practitioners.
- Subspecialties within Emergency Medicine are also well represented including pediatrics, public health, medical education, simulation, and ultrasound.
It’s amazing to be part of such a great FOAM community with its breadth of expertise and diversity.
Future Direction
Others have noted the lack of gender diversity in the community and have sought solutions. Dr. Petra Dolman (@petradMD) launched a twitter account (@feMedchat) and hashtag (#feMed) dedicated to discussing issues relevant to women in medicine with regular twitter chats, article discussion, and potential mentoring opportunities. This is sure to become an area to follow for future growth and opportunity.
Original August 30, 2014; Updated May 8, 2015
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