Envisioning 2.0

Over the past year, we have witnessed significant changes in the healthcare social media landscape – especially in the blogosphere. Healthcare providers are beginning to embrace blogs as a means of sharing information and their experiences with colleagues, patients and the general public. Major healthcare organizations, including the Centers for Disease Control and the publishers of the journal Health Affairs have launched Weblogs to facilitate dialogue about important subjects. These developments are cause for celebration.

However, fully embracing social media means much more than simply starting a blog or launching a podcast. It requires making a commitment to engaging in open and honest dialogue with stakeholders. Transparency and honesty are highly valued in the social media arena. However, this requirement has led many players in the healthcare system to fear it. Another reason is that many do not understand why social media is important or think those developing user generated content will have much impact on the healthcare system.
Read the rest of this entry »