Webcast brain surgery? Hospitals see marketing tool

Faced with economic pressures and patients with abundant choices, hospitals are using unconventional ways of connecting directly with the public. Seeking to attract or educate patients, entice donors, gain recognition, and recruit or retain top doctors, hospitals are using Twitter from operating rooms, showing surgery on YouTube, and having patients blog about their procedures. They consider the methods inexpensive ways to stand out in an era of reality TV and voluminous medical information available online.