Circulation of Information

Taking the Pulse of Social Media

Health Information

Image: katerha flickr

Image: Laura4Smith, flickr

your health was between you,

your doctor and

maybe your family.

Less than 20 years ago,

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Now, blogging about your health worries, being on an e-mail list for your diagnosis or ‘liking’ a

health related cause is more than typical.

Since we are always connected,

we use our social media tools

to influence our health related decisions

just like we would buying a new pair of shoes.

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Image: deanjenkins morguefile

In fact, just over 65% of people who use social media said that it was somewhat to very likely that it would influence their health care decisions.

Image: Mark Hunter

Furthermore, 61%of adults look online for

health information.

Yutaka Tsutano, flickr

Is technology

and social media making us healthier, smarter or more aware?

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The answer appears to be yes – but often not because we are getting the right answers but

instead we are getting the right questions.

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say it lead them to ask a doctor new questions, or to get a second opinion from another doctor.

53%

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60% say the information found online affected a

decision about how to treat an illness or

condition.

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Our awareness is growing as we connect with the tools to tell us what is going on, right

now, right here and around the world.

Image: Niklas Wikstrom, flickr

For example, whoissick.com gives users the ability to click on common symptoms they may be experiencing and see if their symptoms are shared by others nearby.

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And the Public Health Agency of Canada is happy to connect with you through your phone, Facebook, Twitter, RSS feed or online videos.

Image: Spencer E. Holtaway, flickr

The Center for Disease Control adds Flickr, a blog, iTunes, Myspace and Youtube to that list!

Current health information can even be found by following Twitter Health or by joining Facebook groups dedicated to a specific disease or illnesses.

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Image: Kevin Saff, flickr

All of these tools can keep you better informed about the health trends that might affect you in the future, according to where you live or may be traveling.

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And if you want to move from a worldwide view to a personal understanding of your own health:

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There is an app for that!

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The Android Market offers no less than

2,275 results for the search word ‘health’.

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One of these options

‘sleepbot’ offers the ability

to track your sleep patterns and even to send the information

and graphs to Facebook.

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Wait.

Do I really want all of my Facebook friends, family and potential employers to know when I went to bed, or how much sleep I get during exam times?

Probably not.

When it comes to your health:

Be careful what you post, where you post it, and who you trust.

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Image: PhotoGraham, flickr

Bottom line: Just because everything is becoming interactive,

doesn’t mean you should interact with it.

Image: epSos.de, flickr

Reference Sites:

http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2009/8-The-Social-Life-of-Health-Information/01-Summary-of-Findings.aspx

http://www.doseofdigital.com/2011/04/lies-pharma-social-media-statistics

https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=1JXXeTq6vJnq1bNAKhzaPtgeTZjzyhF_hkfgjbAeBNQg&hl=en&pli=1

www.whoissick.com

http://www.cdc.gov/socialmedia/