Technology enables the mission of U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS). It widens access to information and tools and pushes power out to all parts of the network, from our colleagues in the federal workforce to our fellow citizens. At HHS, we seek to create a learning system that recognizes the potential of […]
peer-to-peer health care
How my food-allergy community “flips the clinic”
May 10-16, 2015, is Food Allergy Awareness Week. I am grateful to the women (and a few men) who help me care for my child with food allergies. I’ve never met most of them in person, but they are there for me, 24×7, answering questions and sharing resources.
Public Q&A: Online patient communities
A community colleague recently asked me where he might find the latest numbers on the percentage of U.S. adults who participate in online patient communities. In the spirit of “public Q&A” I’d like to share my answer and ask people to add tips about other resources in the comments. Up until July 2014, I led […]
Hack needed: Tiny pills, trembling hands
A friend writes: I am sweeping the kitchen and just found one of my brother-in-law’s Parkinson’s pills [Ropinirole]. Every time he has to take it, he drops it. It is tiny and, well, he has Parkinson’s. I can’t tell you how many times the kids end up on the floor looking for the pill he […]
Find your people
Longtime readers will recognize this story, but I’m posting it again here–and on Medium–to honor Moebius Syndrome Awareness Day: When Burt Minow was born in 1922, his disability — partial hearing loss and complete facial paralysis—was immediately apparent. His mouth was frozen in a sort of frown, and he could not suck on a nipple to get […]
Save us, Facebook
The Reuters story about Facebook taking its “first steps into healthcare” read like an announcement that Las Vegas was getting into entertainment or that New York City was getting into fashion. Extraordinary health communities have grown up between the cracks of Facebook’s platform. It’s just that up until now executives publicly looked the other way. […]
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