The Basics Of Health 2.0

Today in my integrative seminar class, which consists of writing a big essay and then presenting your topic, a classmate of mine wrote her paper on Health 2.0. I found this quite interesting, so here I hope to expand on what my friend presented.

Health 2.0 is a variation of Web 2.0 that deals specifically with health. One can post personal information about themselves on sites such as Web MD, as well as health issues that he or she might have. Then, they can interact with others and provide support for people who suffer from a similar illness.
Some sites like PatientsLikeMe.com take the information that you add to your profile and sell it to third parties who process and analyze it. This can lead to advancement in research. There is some controversy though, because people give their information for free, and get no monetary compensation. My take on this is that Web 2.0 is all about sharing, and if you don't wanna share, then don't post anything online.

I think that Health 2.0 programs are great, and will truly revolutionize the North American health care system. However, in Canada, th healthcare system is very complex, where there are private clinics and hospitals, as well as partnerships between medical centers that can exclude certain clinics and use a totally different system than another group of hospitals.

So, Health 2.0 has the potential to be a huge hit, and I think it will be one once people realize that the Internet is meant for sharing. We also have to break certain boundaries and unite hospitals so medical staff can cooperate in order to save more lives.