My name is Sara Catalano and I am an Italian speech therapist recently graduated from the University of Ancona. I am doing the Campusworld internship experience for six months at the allied health unit of Uclan in the city of Preston, Great Britain.
Collaborating with Dr. Hazel Roddam I had the opportunity to discover ReSNetSLT, a research support network for connecting people in similar professional roles, telling stories and inspiring others to participate in research.
Through the hashtag #ReSNetSLT it is possible to participate in a monthly discussion forum on Twitter of published research documents.
Twitter is a free platform, a very effective social network in the field of research as it allows you to be always up to date on what happens internationally. It also offers the possibility of entering high-visibility conversations allowing you to create real interactions about up-to-date research-related news.
Professionally speaking, thanks to the use of simple, immediate and quick words in discussion chats on areas of professional competence, Twitter is a profitable tool to keep me informed and updated about the latest research that is directly useful in everyday work.
Often in these discussion chats also the authors of the articles join in, making the exchange of ideas even more interesting and promoting a greater implementation of evidence-based practices
The ReSNetSLT website provides very clear instructions on how to use Twitter and how to be part of discussion chats.
Personally this website made me understand how social media can be useful to our knowledge and profession, how a simple chat discussion can open the mind to different possibilities, especially when everyone can be a part of it; this is an international possibility.
I am convinced that the use of this platform and in particular of chat rooms should be taught already during the university, to allow everyone to make the most of the opportunities offered by technology.
What are you waiting for to take a look at #ReSNetSLT too?