My name is Eniliz Gerena and I am a student pharmacist at Nova Southeastern University in Ponce, PR. As part of an elective course, we are required to create a blog. I admit this is my first time blogging, but I am really excited.I expect to bring interesting discussions as well as valuable information.
I recently found an online article that briefly discusses how social media are important for health informatics, but can also be a misleading source of information. In the article, they talk about patients with specific diseases and caregivers that look for information about the diseases on the Internet. Most of the information found about treatment options was categorized as erroneous or misleading. However, when they seek contact with other people with the same disease, the information exchange has been really successful.
Health informatics is not only about looking for information of diseases and treatment options. The scope of Health Informatics Technology and Social Media goes far beyond what the majority of us would have thought. Is mostly about improving the quality of life of patients by giving them the tools to make informed decisions about their treatments. Such tools can include simple information sources, networking with other patients as well as health care professionals, and telephone applications among others. For us, healthcare professionals, it is an amazing tool to expand our knowledge and be better prepared to help the patients.
My purpose with this blog is to bring to the table information that can be useful to both, the provider and the patient, to positively impact our community. I hope this is just the beginning of a wonderful journey.
The above mentioned article can be found at: http://www.healthcare-informatics.com/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=news&mod=News&mid=9A02E3B96F2A415ABC72CB5F516B4C10&tier=3&nid=6AB55993D2CC4281AB5A37FDCD60A6B5
