Network Analysis of an Interactive Health Network

Social networks are beginning to be adopted by healthcare professionals as a means to manage institutional knowledge, disseminate peer to peer knowledge and to highlight individual physicians and institutions. There are social networks created to help its members with various physical and mental ailments. For people suffering from life altering diseases, and people who are alcoholic, addict, obese and suffering from disabilities. The present Paper studies the level of usage of online social networking sites by Medical professional and its potential benefit to them. The study is based on a survey conducted involving practicing doctors of various medical traits. The study indicates that Physicians rarely use social networking site. Most of them doubt the reliability and accuracy of information for medical practice. However they agree it can be used for medical education, research and advertisement.

Medicina Universitaria, 2015

The number of social network users is rising meteorically, a trend that also includes health-care workers. Even though social networking can serve educational functions and is an effective means of communicating medical resources, it is associated with a variety of important challenges. Misuse of social networks by health-care workers can have dire consequences, ranging from seemingly simple issues such as affecting the doctor's reputation to serious legal matters. Maintaining professionalism and preserving the concepts of confidentiality and privacy is essential. In this review we will analyze some of the dilemmas that have been brought about by the use of social networks in the healthcare environment, as well as existing guidelines on the matter.

Journal of Korea Multimedia Society, 2014

In consideration of the rapid changes in the so-called information society of the 21 st century, about 80% of a total population in Korea has used the Internet. However, the social effect of the Internet and related devices has not been yet systematically studied in the literature. In healthcare as well, consumers' efficient use of the Internet for their positive health outcomes is becoming an issue. The purpose of this study was to analyze the medical subject headings keywords of the selected studies on consumers' use of Internet and mobile health information. For the analysis, social network analysis was used to provide basic information to present directions for future research on the field of interest.

The paper focuses on health social network, as websites where patients can find medical information at a number of different levels – since services offered range from emotional support to self-tracking and to clinical trial access. To monitor them, in 2005 the World Health Organisation (WHO) founded the Global Observatory for eHealth (GOe), with the scope to certify health-care-on-the-web through an ethical code (HON, Health On the Net). It has been realized in order to facilitate the distribution of useful and reliable information on the web among citizens. Moving from the eight HON’s principles, with the addition of a new area based to a set of items referring to a cost-benefits analysis, we have carried out a research aiming at investigating potential relations between the rating and the economic benefit gained by an eHealth website. In addition, through a discriminant analysis it has been possible to weigh the attributes (referring both to the HON certification and to the cost-benefit analysis) due to the positioning of a website.

International Journal of Advanced Computer Science and Applications

The patient is now better connected with other patients just like the consumer is now better connected with other consumers in particular through the growing adoption of social media and online peer to peer communities. These relationships which become collaborative have either positive or indeed negative consequences that may either endorse or have implications for a firm's products [32]. The aim of this research was to gain an understanding of the impact social media has on patient influence on healthcare provision especially in relation to information seeking and clinical product choice. It compares a group of patients who are predominantly online information seekers with a group who are predominantly offline information seekers. Bias will be eliminated by utilising probability sampling techniques in order to be able to perform statistical analysis on the results obtained. This study capitalises on having access to approximately 8000+ Direct to Patient consumers who are currently receiving devices for the management of their bladder problems. The intention of this research project is to gain an understanding of how two way online interactions have developed between patients with similar chronic medical conditions and how firms can use online social media to improve their relationship with patients. The key research question of this paper is: Have online social media tools affected demand for healthcare intermediation in patients, who experience chronic medical conditions and reflect a need to become better informed. The findings of this pre-Covid research were that, for patient groups that had chronic conditions, there was a positive relationship between time spent in developed peer to peer communities, are more trusting of online information and spend more time online.

Social Science & Medicine, 2015

A growing number of online health communities offer individuals the opportunity to receive information, advice, and support from peers. Recent studies have demonstrated that these new online contacts can be important informational resources, and can even exert significant influence on individuals' behavior in various contexts. However little is known about how people select their health contacts in these virtual domains. This is because selection preferences in peer networks are notoriously difficult to detect. In existing networks, unobserved pressures on tie formation e such as common organizational memberships, introductions to friends of friends, or limitations on accessibility e may mistakenly be interpreted as individual preferences for interacting/not interacting with others. We address these issues by adopting a social media approach to studying network formation. We study social selection using an in vivo study within an online exercise program, in which anonymous participants have equal opportunities for initiating relationships with other program members. This design allows us to identify individuals' preferences for health contacts, and to evaluate what these preferences imply for members' access to new kinds of health information, and for the kinds of social influences to which they are exposed. The study was conducted within a goal-oriented fitness competition, in which participation was greatest among a small core of active individuals. Our results show that the active participants displayed indifference to the fitness and exercise profiles of others, disregarding information about others' fitness levels, exercise preferences, and workout experiences, instead selecting partners almost entirely on the basis of similarities on gender, age, and BMI. Interestingly, the findings suggest that rather than expanding and diversifying their sources of health information, participants' choices limited the value of their online resources by selecting contacts based on characteristics that are common sources of homophily in offline relationships. In light of our findings, we discuss design principles that may be useful for organizations and policy makers trying to improve the value of participants' social capital within online health programs.

Network Modeling Analysis in Health Informatics and Bioinformatics, 2013

The growing amount of data in health-care social media requires innovative new analysis methods, which are elementary to exploration of relationship dynamics, in a bid to understand the new roles social media plays in health care. In this work, we use network analysis to explore the temporal nature of two large diabetes social networks, with a view to enhancing our knowledge of the development of community structures and cohesion factors. We compare our findings with analysis of two other nonhealth-care social networks. Current results reveal how diabetes online communities are very dynamic, suggesting diabetes patients are usually actively engaged for periods of less than a year, typically immediately following diagnosis. Additionally, we observe shrinking of both diameter and density, as well as disassortative mixing. The presented empirical study informs future online intervention strategies for promoting health behavior and lifestyle changes among people with diabetes.

Informatics for Health and Social Care, 2014

CHI '06 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 2006

Online health communities provide a means for patients and their families to learn about an illness, seek and offer support, and connect with others in similar circumstances. They are supported by a variety of technologies (e.g., email lists, forums, chat rooms) and are hosted by patients, advocacy groups, medical organizations, and corporations. They raise difficult design challenges because of the wide variability of members' medical expertise, the severity of problems due to misinformation, and the need for emotional support. The importance of on-line health communities is evidenced by their popularity, as well as the significant impact they have on the lives of their members. This Special Interest Group (SIG) will explore current trends in online health communities, as well as discuss the socio-technical design challenges and opportunities that they afford.

2012