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Health Literacy - Social Media

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Informatics 2.0: implications of social media, mobile health, and patient-reported outcomes for healthcare and individual privacy -- Ohno-Machado 19 (5): 683. Ten Rules for Health Care Organizations Interested in Using Social Media. By JAAN SIDOROV, MD Include social media like ”Facebook” or “Twitter” in health care business plan, and you’ll probably prompt glazed looks from the average health care administrator. Those who recognize the terms will want to know what they have to do with filling up that new heart catheterization suite or increasing referrals to their infusion center. They’re too busy with marketing flotsam like “Top 100″ billboard campaigns or convincing the local news media to mention that newly renovated lobby. These functionaries look, but they do not see. Case in point: during a recent work-out at the local fitness center, the Disease Management Care Blog witnessed two elder women chatting while speed-walking on side-by-side treadmills.

As mentioned in yesterday’s post, health care organizations that realize that they need to get the attention of the two women on those exercise bikes will find it extremely challenging. 6) Worries? 10) It isn’t cheap: This takes time. 5 points concerning patient engagement and health IT. With the slow demise of paper records and the rise of electronic platforms, the opportunity for patients to take hold of their healthcare has never been stronger. But, there are still a few setbacks and some points to keep in mind when it comes to health IT and patient engagement, said Sterling Lanier, CEO of Tonic Health. “You have medical forms and medical jargon built for the provider benefit and not the patient,” he said.

“It’s confusing, tedious, and full of acronyms – it’s an alphabet soup. Patients feel lost. Lanier identifies five more points about patient engagement and health IT. 1. [See also: IT alliance presses for patient identifiers.] 2. 3. Should Physicians Use Email to Communicate With Patients? Reviewing social media use by clinicians -- von Muhlen and Ohno-Machado 19 (5): 777. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Associationjamia.bmj.com 2012;19:777-781 doi:10.1136/amiajnl-2012-000990 Brief communication + Author Affiliations Correspondence to Dr Lucila Ohno-Machado, University of California, San Diego, Division of Biomedical Informatics, 9500 Gilman Dr., Bldg 2 #0728, La Jolla, CA 92093 0728, USA; lohnomachado@ucsd.edu Contributors MvM developed the literature search criteria, performed the search and wrote the manuscript. DvM assisted in scoring literature results for inclusion. LOM reviewed and edited the manuscript.

Received 6 April 2012 Accepted 4 June 2012 Published Online First 3 July 2012 Abstract Adoption studies of social media use by clinicians were systematically reviewed, up to July 26th, 2011, to determine the extent of adoption and highlight trends in institutional responses. Footnotes Funding This article was financially supported by NIH R24TW008805 and U54HL108460. Articles citing this article. 6 reasons physicians need to be on social media. Live tweeting, ukulele playing and numerous discussions swirling around social media and healthcare were to had throughout the Connecting Healthcare + Social Media Conference, produced by NYC Health Business Leaders, this past week in New York.

During the latter half of the day Thursday, Mike Sevilla, M.D., family physician and blogger at Family Medicine Rocks, took the stage to present not only his own social media story, but to convince other physicians why they, too, need to be on social media. "I'm in a group of four family docs and a practitioner, and yes, I do social media," said Sevilla. "What do I write about, and what's my point? What I wanted to do was bring the reader into the exam room with me … I wanted to let the reader know how difficult it is to take care of patients in this broken healthcare system. Sevilla talked through six reasons why providers and physicians need to be on social media. 1. 2.

[See also: Social media plays a role in patient's choice of hospital.] 3. Is That Healthcare Website Making You Sick? -- InformationWeek. Many healthcare websites provide valuable information that can help prepare you for the next doctor's visit. But some serve up misinformation that just might land you in the hospital. Here's how to tell the difference. 1 of 9 Dr. Nanette Santoro, a professor at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine, tells the story of Beth, a friend who at age 46 was diagnosed with uterine cancer. While Dr. Of course, for every story that warns about information found on independent healthcare websites, there are plenty of other stories that support it. As we all know, the Internet is a mix of trash and treasures--the trick is figuring out which is which.

When you review any healthcare website, it helps to mentally place the advice you find on a "reliability ladder. " At the bottom of the ladder are websites that recommend advice or therapies based only on testimonials. With these guidelines in mind, let's take a look at some health-related website examples. More Insights. 5 patient-centered social media risks. These days, it's common to connect with others via Facebook and receive news via Twitter. In fact, according to AskAaronLee.com, Twitter has 105,779,710 registered users with 6 million search queries a day. But as the use of social media reaches new heights, so do the risks associated with it – and this is especially true when it comes to patients. “Information obtained in the public domain, such as social media sites, is there forever and has the potential to be indexed endlessly in many different types of data warehouses,” said Chris Apgar, CEO and president at Apgar & Associates.

“The risks are great and can include patient harm, lawsuits, data breaches, regulatory audit and reputational damage to your clinic or patients.” "It is important to take a close look at what you want to accomplish with social media in the short and long term,” added Christine Arevalo, director of healthcare identity management at ID Experts. Apgar and Arevalo outline five patient-centered social media risks. HEALTHBEAT: Helping doctors keep human touch. WASHINGTON (AP) — Medical student Gregory Shumer studied the electronic health record and scooted his laptop closer to the diabetic grandfather sitting on his exam table. "You can see," he pointed at the screen — weight, blood sugar and cholesterol are too high and rising. The man didn't reveal he was too nearsighted to see those numbers, but he'd quietly volunteered that he'd been ignoring his own health after his wife's death.

The future-Dr. Shumer looked away from the computer for a sympathetic conversation — exactly the point of Georgetown University's novel training program. As the nation moves to paperless medicine, doctors are grappling with an awkward challenge: How do they tap the promise of computers, smartphones and iPads in the exam room without losing the human connection with their patients?

Are the gadgets a boon, or a distraction? "That's the tension I feel every day," says Dr. View gallery It's not just a matter of etiquette. Hence, the training for new doctors. 9 Health IT Tools Patients Should Understand -- InformationWeek. To be actively involved in your own medical care, you need to understand the basics about electronic medical records, health information exchanges, and more. Check out our primer. 1 of 10 If you're a patient in search of the best medical care possible, it makes sense to understand some of the electronic tools doctors now use to manage your care. The fact is, health IT changes how physicians and other healthcare providers document and view healthcare information and exchange data with each other. This slideshow offers an overview of not only the electronic tools that clinicians manage, but also some of the tools they are starting to use to communicate with patients. An EMR (also called an electronic health record, or EHR) is a confidential record of your healthcare that your doctor, hospital, or other healthcare provider keeps on a computer.

Many providers also use secure patient portals that, in some cases, interact with their EMRs. More Insights. CIGNA Launches Healthcare Podcasts - Healthcare - The Patient. Doctors Concerned About Consumers' Mobile Health Use - Healthcare - Mobile & Wireless. Promises of healthcare quality increases and cost savings aren't enough to ease physicians' worries about patients using mobile health tools, new PwC study shows. 10 Wearable Devices To Keep Patients Healthy (click image for larger view and for slideshow) Roughly half of consumers predict that within the next three years mobile health will improve the convenience (46%), cost (52%), and quality (48%) of their healthcare, according to a survey of consumers, payers, and physicians in both developed and emerging markets around the world.

Like consumers, health plans are also enthusiastic about the technology, but doctors are showing less zeal, according to the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) survey. The survey, Emerging mHealth: Paths for Growth, also revealed that 42% of payers, compared to 25% of physicians, encourage patients to let doctors monitor their health and activities using mobile health services and devices. Other key findings in the consumer portion of the survey are: More Insights. Health Content and Patient Education Solutions - Healthwise. Expert Health Information - Questions and Answers. New study examines how medical symptoms presented online makes a difference in health-care choices.

Public release date: 12-Mar-2012 [ Print | E-mail Share ] [ Close Window ] Contact: Julie Newberg julie.newberg@asu.edu 480-727-3116Arizona State University TEMPE (March 12, 2012) - Maybe you've had a reoccurring sore throat or frequent headaches. Perhaps the pain in your leg won't go away. In the past, you might have gone to a doctor's office to diagnose symptoms. Today, people are more likely to go online to punch in their symptoms. Details of a new study examining how symptoms presented online influence people's reactions to possible medical conditions will be presented in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

The research was conducted by Arizona State University Associate Psychology Professor Virginia Kwan, Sean Wojcik of the University of California, Irvine, Talya Miron-shatz of Ono Academic College, Ashley Votruba of ASU, and Christopher Olivola of the University of Warwick. "The length of the list matters," Kwan said. . [ Print | E-mail. Tmp/KamelBoulosChapter_social-media-for-health-literacy_WHO_THE-SOLID-FACTS_2012.pdf. Nonprofit health organizations increase health literacy through social media.

As the presence of social media continues to increase as a form of communication, health organizations are searching for the most effective ways to use the online tools to pass important information to the public. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri have found that nonprofit organizations and community groups appear to be more actively engaged in posting health information and interacting with the public on Twitter than other types of health-related organizations, such as health business corporations, educational institutions and government agencies. "Twitter may be more appealing to nonprofit organizations because it creates a barrier-free environment that allows these organizations to share important information through real-time exchanges without significant efforts," said Hyojung Park, a doctoral candidate at the Missouri School of Journalism.

ECDC social marketing, prevention and control of communicable disease (PDF) Health - Neil Wagner - Text Messages Are a Good Public Health Tool, Flu Vaccination Edition. As less people read the mail or tune in to traditional broadcast outlets, the nature of a successful PSA is changing. A study of over 9,000 urban minority children shows that sending text messages to their parents can increase the number of children who receive flu vaccinations. The increase was modest, with the flu vaccination rate rising from 39.9 percent to 43.6 percent.

Among parents who actually received the text messages, the vaccination rate rose to 46.3 percent. Some people even described the text messages as an angel on their shoulder. Text messaging is becoming more and more valuable as a health tool. Despite urging from the American Academy of Pediatrics, people, especially children, still aren't getting their yearly flu shot. This study tested the effect of targeted text messages to low-income, urban parents on the flu vaccination of their children. The first three text messages provided general information about vaccines, including vaccine safety information. What Doctors Think About Your Online Health Searches. I’ll admit it: I’ve Googled “scalp sunburn” before. Hey, when you have a combination of fair skin and fine hair, these things happen. Plus, let’s be real — a hat really didn’t go with pigtails. In the grand scheme of things, though, a peeling scalp isn’t a huge deal (although my black shirts would disagree).

People turn to the Internet for information on all kinds of health issues, whether for a lump in one’s breast or a sudden asthma attack. For most, Googling “diaper rash” is more convenient than loading the baby in the minivan and heading to the doctor’s office. In the past, a mother may have referred to one of many baby books or official medical pamphlets for advice. Husband-wife team Drs. When it comes to patients researching health advice on the web, Hartzband and Groopman have been exposed to consequences both positive and negative. But when in the hands of patients, this surplus of medical information can prove hazardous. Sometimes those searches save lives. Dr. However, Dr. Walgreens' Facebook Site Adds Health Advice - Healthcare - The Patient. Sharecare, made famous by Dr. Oz, now available via Walgreens' Facebook page. 7 Patient Education Tools (click image for larger view and for slideshow) If you're one of the 2 million people who follow Walgreens on Facebook, you now have a new resource to answer your healthcare questions.

Founded in October 2010 by WebMD founder Jeff Arnold and Mehmet Oz, M.D., the well-known heart surgeon, author, and TV personality, Sharecare presents healthcare content in the form of answers to questions about health and wellness, as well as the mechanics of the healthcare system. Any healthcare professional who applies can become an "expert" on SharedCare. . [ To find out which medical apps doctors and patients are turning to, see 9 Mobile Health Apps Worth A Closer Look. ] Answers may come from books and popular patient education websites like Healthwise. Some clearly marked answers come from companies that specialize in particular areas of healthcare.

Sharecare itself offers social networking features. The Healthcare Blogger Code of Ethics and HIPAA | The Social Medic. One of the problems that early health care bloggers faced was trying to figure out what was and what was not permissible or ethical in the blogosphere. Since this post is dealing with legal matters, first a quick disclaimer: The information presented herein represents the views of the author as of the date of publication. The publication is for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. While every attempt has been made to verify the information provided in this publication, neither the author nor its affiliates/partners assume any responsibility for errors, inaccuracies or omissions.

If advice concerning medical, legal or related matters is needed, the services of a fully qualified professional should be sought. Wasn’t that fun? The Health Care Blogger Code of Ethics In May 2007 discussion of the need for an oath or a code evolved into The Healthcare Blogger Code of Ethics. Perspective – that your readers understand your professional perspective. How To Achieve Better Patient Engagement - Healthcare - The Patient. Study Predicts Growing Use Of Social Media In Healthcare. University challenge targets NCDs with mHealth and social media. Docs slow to engage patients with IT. Could a Facebook for Doctors Improve Your Care? GE Rolls Out Upgraded Online Patient Portal - Healthcare - The Patient. Biomed Analysis: Engage the public on new technologies. Commercial off-the-shelf consumer health informatics interventions: recommendations for their design, evaluation and redesign -- Marquard and Zayas-Cabán 19 (1): 137. Median Ruby Wax launches Facebook-style website for adults with mental illness.

Study Predicts Growing Use Of Social Media In Healthcare. Keas - Employee Wellness Program. Keas Is Like FarmVille for Coorporate Wellness.