Sunday, August 05, 2007

Medicine 2.0

Web 2.0 is the name for the user controlled distribution of content on the internet. It's a broad term that includes now-common elements of the web like wikis, blogs, social networking platforms and personal broadcasting (like YouTube and podcasts). A contingent of health care provider bloggers contribute to a regular online conference (called a carnival) to share ideas about how web 2.0 could change health care. Head over to The Health Wisdom Blog for the latest Medicine 2.0 carnival. My contribution features the Who Is Sick service, a site where anyone can self-report symptoms. I ask whether this will help providers and public health folks understand current contagious illnesses, or will it confuse efforts to understand cold season epidemiology? Other entries highlight using the virtual world SecondLife to teach chemistry, and the danger of using the physician's online tool UpToDate too much.

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