e-Patients Blog
The blog of the Society for Participatory Medicine. Want to be a contributor?
NOT an e-patient: freaks out at the first search result
An SPM member [name redacted - wishes to remain anonymous :–)] emailed this, with the playful subject line "A New e-Patient": (Click the image to go to the high-res on the comic's site; © Copyright 2011 King Features Syndicate, all rights reserved.) Funny comic, but...
Twenty years ago today: “The WWW Project aims to allow links…”
O'Reilly Media's Alex Howard, who tweets as @Digiphile, dropped this gem in the stream today: "1991: "The WWW project aims to allow links to be made to any information anywhere"-@timberners_lee http://j.mp/r8bckt /HT @Zee" Well that's a link you gotta click, if you're...
What You Can Do if You See Slipshod Health Care News
Check out Gary Schwitzer of Health News Review on actions you can and should take. Part of a short five part video series. http://www.healthnewsreview.org/blog/2011/07/part-5-of-video-series-what-you-can-do-if-you-see-slipshod-health-care-news.html
Tune in to hear Retraction Watch on Science Friday
One of the most common questions about e-patient skills is how to tell the difference between good and bad information, as we research. A wonderful resource just passed its first birthday: Retraction Watch, a blog that digs into the details when science falls short....
Medicare releases hugely important hospital quality/safety data
I'm about to board a plane at 5 a.m. so this is a quick preliminary note. One of the key skills an engaged, informed patient needs is how to find good quality care. Today USA Today reports that Medicare has just released information that I think we've had a right to...
Introducing Sue Woods, new SPM board member
The Society for Participatory Medicine  recently named three new board members. They've been introduced to the members on our private listserve, and we've been thinking about introducing the new leadership to the public here. One is Sue Woods MD MPH, a potent and...
Mind the Gap: Peer-to-peer Healthcare
Update: My notes are now online: Mind the Gap: Peer-to-peer HealthCare. The newest material is in the section entitled, "Getting Past the Early-Adopter Stage" -- roadblocks, opportunities, and beacons for change (patient leaders, clinician leaders, and technology...
Alan Greene: “Jumping out of a Plane is 47 Times Safer Than Checking into a Hospital. Unless…”
SPM co-founder and co-chair emeritus Alan Greene MD, of DrGreene.com, just posted this tasty numerical comparison. Remedy, he says? "Working together can be one of the best ways to prevent errors, which is one of the reasons I believe the Society...
The e-Perspectives of e-Patient Dave
Our own e-Patient Dave is featured in an extensive interview with Kim Chandler McDonald, an Australian journalist who is passionate about what she calls the "meHealth movement." Part one of their conversation is posted today to coincide with the TED conversation, "Let...
“Don’t you wanna know??” A proposed PSA about asking questions
Now up on YouTube: You, the patient, are a vital component of medical decision making. Believe it or not, it's worth your effort to find out about your treatment options! This informal FlipCam vignette models a physician encouraging the patient to ask: "Don't you want...
We’ve changed!
We've updated this blog’s design template so it’s more clearly a member of the SPM family. Specifically, we’re now using a color-modified version of our Journal of Participatory Medicine's template, which is a lot slicker and more modern than this blog's previous...
Why Sometimes Health Reporting Should be Done By Journalists
I'm all for citizen journalism, and can even stand the content mills like LiveStrong, who have pimped out their name and brand in order to make a quick buck. But I draw the line with bad reporting and worse, biased representation of the data to prove a point. Case in...
