MCH Social Media

MCH Social Media

John RichardsGeorgetown University: MCH Library and SUID/SIDS Resource Center at NCEMCH

Health Information Group/MCH Distance Learning ProjectsNational Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center

MCHB Popcorn Presentation, September 27, 2011

MCH Social Media

Why MCH Social Media?

What Is Social Media?

Promising Practices for MCH Social Media

Resources

Why MCH Social Media81% of families, 97% of pediatricians, and 96% of state health department staff use the Internet to routinely locate health information (AAP, 2003; Fox et al., 2009; Turner et al., 2009). Web 2.0 technologies that emphasize active information sharing have exploded into the public health landscape because they “reinforce and personalize health messages, reach new audiences, and build a communication infrastructure based on open information exchange” (AHRQ, 2010).

Facebook has over 350 million active users (50% log in every day); in 2009 Twitter experienced a 1,382% growth rate (Burkhardt, 2010). Web 2.0 technologies are numerous and ever-evolving. In the public health arena, many applications have received attention for being effective in reaching families with children:

health blogs, wikis, video-sharing sites, online social networks, data mashups, user-generated tagging/folksonomies…

“Information overload!”

Why MCH Social Media

The right information at the right time? Users must now sift through mountains of material to find what is useful.

Examples: a search for the keywords “child obesity” on Google yields 6,240,000 matches; a search for online support groups for families of children with autism spectrum disorders yields over 5,000 local and national groups; a search for “childhood asthma” on Twitter yields over 16,000 discussion topics in one week alone (data gathered online 10/04/2010). Evolution? The technologies of finding and sharing information have also become more numerous and complex as Web 2.0 has evolved.

Examples: over 200 Internet-based Web 2.0 tools that have direct impact for public health; over 800 health-related smart phone applications available for purchase from communications carriers such as AT&T and Verizon; over 126,000,000 personal and professional blogs currently exist (Pingdom, 2010).


Specific Needs of Professionals.

Despite the stated need that IT skills, including Web 2.0 technologies, are “essential for effective and efficient practice in MCH” (Polhamus et al., 2000), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that “little systemic work has been done to understand the information needs of the public health workforce” (Rambo et al.).

Studies have found that there is a “persistent gap between needed technology skills and current technical capacity among public health professionals” (Polhamus et al.).

Redesigned U.S. Public Health Service’s goals include to “improve IT skills among public health professionals and medical practitioners” (Public Health Data Policy Coordinating Committee).


Specific Needs of Professionals.

The research that has been focused on IT in Maternal and Child Health (MCH) to date has laid “only a very general foundation of user needs and technologies to be employed. Little effort has been spent learning about the benefits of new media. [MCH] seems to be behind the curve in using social media” (Ridgeway, 2008).

Why MCH Social MediaSpecific Needs of Families.

According to a Pew Internet & American Life Project study, 58% of parents stated that their most important source for health information is the Internet, not their pediatrician (Madden et al., 2006). However, numerous studies have also shown that when using IT, “parents will find poor quality information.” (Kind, 2009).

There has been little research into how families use and can improve their IT skills. According to one study, only 2% of organizations surveyed focus on children’s health and technology as compared to 79% that have researched children’s education and technology (KirkHart et al., 2008).

The Internet, particularly through Web 2.0 features, increasingly is being recognized as more than an information repository; it is now used “as a means to intervene and communicate, including user-generated content… particularly in rural and underserved areas” (Kind, 2009).


Collecting Resources.

Health Information Group:

New Media Primer

Distance Learning Toolkit

http://healthinfogroup.org


1. There is no one right way!

2. Get your feet wet!

3. People are forgiving!

4. The Pilot Test is your friend!

5. The landscape is always changing!

Resources (social media is here to stay)…

Thank you!

John [email protected]

Georgetown University: MCH Library and SUID/SIDS Resource Center at NCEMCHHealth Information Group/MCH Distance Learning ProjectsNational Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center

MCH Social Media

Documents

Transcript of MCH Social Media