Wednesday, Jul. 15th 2009
With the evolution of social networking sites such as Twitter has come a whole new way of communicating. Most of this is good in the sense that it provides a forum for individuals to express themselves, reach out to others with similar backgrounds or interests, or to reconnect with old friends or make new ones. The social networking phenomenon is generally considered a favorable one, but there are some interesting implications when it comes to areas one may not have considered when they signed up. With a site such as Twitter, you are seeing rather dramatic changes to things as big as public health. Hard to believe perhaps, but nonetheless true as people are providing all sorts of information about themselves which translates into valuable data. Here we look at five ways that Twitter is changing public health:
1. Privacy: There is no doubt that with the evolution of social networking sites such as Twitter, privacy goes out the window. When an individual can post their whereabouts or thoughts at any given moment or in turn learn about those of others, privacy seems to be a thing of the past. As it relates to public health, when an individual posts something about their own health or some sort of medical issue, the whole world can see it. This can be good if you are looking for support or a forum by which to ask questions or converse with others, but if you are hoping for any sort of privacy as it relates to your health issues, then beware with your given postings. This can translate into public corporations centered round health related issues getting your information and turning that into data that can be valuable to them.
2. Targeted Advertising: As you use sites like Twitter more and more, you will quickly see that advertisements begin to pop up that almost seem as though they are catered or specified to you personally. There is even pending lawsuits with some social networking sites and big corporations centered on the very ads that pop up as an individual logs on. As it relates to public health, the corporations that gain access to your information are taking that data and using it as an opportunity to advertise to you on the very issues that matter in your life. This too can be considered an invasion of privacy and can lend way to bigger issues in the social networking world.
3. Forum to Speak with Others with Similar Health Conditions: If you are dealing with a medical issue and feel as though you just need somebody to talk to, you are bound to find a forum or audience out on a site such as Twitter. This can serve as an excellent support to some who need likeminded individuals to talk to or consort with and is one of the beautiful things about social networking overall.
4. Forum for Which Individuals Can Receive Health and Medical Advice: While surfing the Internet blindly can be a bit daunting, getting advice from those individuals on a site such as Twitter for whom you can see credentials and background can be fruitful. If you use a social networking site such as Twitter to help you network with those experts that can help you or at least point you in the right direction when it comes to medical advice, you may just find that this can be your very best resource.
5. Access to Current Events and Trends Prematurely: If you truly want to network with the experts and gain some knowledge when it comes to public health trends, current events and policies, then this is your site to do just that. When it comes to all things having to do with public health, there is bound to be an expert out there or at least an individual who does the research and legwork for you. You can really utilize a social networking site for far more than just chatting; you can find some excellent information there as well.
Mary Frederick is a blogger and enjoys writing about medical career topics, such as how to obtain a masters in nursing online, job and education tips, and more.