Kolkata:  Bariatric surgeons specialising in obesity and diabetes in Asia will be able to access, via Facebook, the latest trends, data and know-how on procedures to better serve their patients, said B. Ramana, the newly-appointed director of International Bariatric Club (IBC), Asia.

“It is surprising but true that Facebook is one of the most important media where a doctor or surgeon educates himself. Somebody who has read the subject and has a specific case and does not know which part of what he knows should be applied to particular patient can seek that information on social media,” Ramana, a senior bariatric surgeon of Bariatrics and Metabolism Initiative, told IANS here.

Ramana will have independent charge of Asia for IBC, the world’s fastest growing medical body of surgeons specialising in obesity and diabetes surgery.

Explaining how social media would be harnessed, he said: “The surgeon without experience in a given case will then seek help from peers who are spread across the world but united on a platform. So Facebook is the platform for IBC and we have domain experts across the globe who pitch in and help the surgeon seeking advice.”

Webinars, videos and tele-mentoring would be part of the arsenal connecting domain experts and trainees on social media, he said.

“Essentially, this will be like the whole world’s specialists coming to the patient’s bedside and giving consultations. A certain level of trust is implied in the consultations because this is a very select cohort of specialists,” he said.