When Worlds Collide: Social Media And CSM 2013

The past week had me out in San Diego for the American Physical Therapy Association's Combined Sections Meeting (CSM). It looked like a pretty good conference program, and hey, you can't beat the weather in San Diego, right?

As it turns out, San Diego was overcast the majority of the time I was there. When it was all said and done, I really can't say that I was that impressed with the programming. More on that later.

But there was a huge redeeming feature to those days in San Diego. It turned out to be a "meeting of the minds" of sorts - brought to us by social media.

I have been using social media for quite some time. My Twitter use (@abesselink) began in February 2008, a long time before there were 13 million users. It has put me in contact with many like-minded thinkers, in a variety of professions and vocations, from around the world. It has been a great way to connect. But it has also provided a tremendous amount of valuable references and reading material. I won't think twice about reading a link posted by one of the trusted people that I follow. It has become important not only for connection, but for the filtering of resources and, ultimately, friendship.

It has even lead to our own PT version of "Real World", in which 6 of the Twitterati - most of whom had not interacted with each other face-to-face before the start of the conference - were housed under one roof for the duration of the conference. No, it wasn't some strange psychosocial experiment gone awry. In fact, it was a huge success, and it provided the foundation and fuel for some great brainstorming of the highest level.

With that said, I had the opportunity over the course of the conference to finally meet with 32 people from the Twitterverse, most of whom I had never met beforehand: @Clinicient, @WebPT, @Therapydia, @mckgeek, @kvenere, @jerry_durhamPT, @AmyHassen, @Dr_Ridge_DPT, @MattSremba, @Denver2point0, @HollyPulket, @ptbise, @SnippetPhysTher, @MattDeBole, @jasonamrich, @HendersonPDX, @ptfromou, @APetersonPT, @PacificDPTweet, @tnoteboom, @Sturdy, @NicoleStoutPT, @mpascoe, @DrBenFung, @SFSydney, @NancyBeckley, @TNBackPain, @jlharrisDPT, @EricRobertson, @eiverspt, @SFsportspinePT, and @PTThinkTank.

I think that's got them all - hopefully, I didn't forget anyone.

We have many great thinkers and thought leaders in this profession. All of the aforementioned people were more than prepared to have thoughtful and insightful discussions about the problems and solutions for the physical therapy profession and the health care world. It was thought-provoking and, frankly, refreshing and inspiring. That is what physical therapy needs at this critical point in our professional evolution.

If there was ever any doubt about the value of social media, there shouldn't be now. Social media brings together people that ARE the change - and they aren't just talking about it. They are doing it. Conferences now just allow us to sit down and have lunch with them - or, better yet, live under the same roof with them (at least for a few days).

There is also no doubt that the interactions with these individuals, and most importantly, their presence in my world, has made that world a better place. I send out my most sincere thanks to everyone. If you are on Twitter, these are all great people to follow.

As I mentioned earlier, I wasn't that impressed with the conference programming. I was a little disheartened. At times, I felt like I was being presented with treatment strategies from 1990. I witnessed too many sessions that reminded me that the profession can get caught "in the weeds" losing sight of the big picture.  But in reality, that may just be a barometer of the profession as a whole at it struggles to define itself and to "move forward".

Was the overall experience a success? Absolutely - but not for the educational content nor the locale. It was all about the value of surrounding yourselves with great people, people that inspire us to grow and learn and challenge ourselves. It was all about presence - the presence of great people in our world. And after this week, I am even more thankful to have so many of them in mine.

Photo credits: Pawns