Instacash: The Ethics of Leveraging Medical Student Status on Social Media

Some medical students leverage their medical student status for profit as social media influencers on platforms such as Instagram. Depending on the size of their following and the brand they are promoting, students can make thousands of dollars per year by advertising products ranging from scrubs to protein powder to mattresses. Yet, they receive few tools as part of their education to help them understand how to reconcile their professional obligations with a desire to generate an income. After examining the potential benefits and harms of social media use, this article considers the possibility of medical student financial gain from being an influencer in light of seasoned physicians' own efforts to profit from industry alliances. Through both historical and contemporary lenses, the authors consider the tension between doctors as healers and moneymakers, before concluding with practical and philosophical approaches for guiding medical student influencers.