2015 A YEAR IN REVIEW
‘ People like to access and connect with other people ’ s stories , even if they ’ re unwilling to share their own ’
– Ellen Beckjord , assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center .
f Ebola since the world ’ s worst outbreak of the disease , including ystems in West Africa struggled to recover from the impact
identified a “ mystery hemorrhagic fever ” that was going around .
This raised the question : What potential do the vast amounts of data shared through social media hold in identifying outbreaks and controlling the disease ?
A San Diego State University professor recently authored a study that shows the connection between predicting potential outbreaks ( specifically pertussis and influenza ) and social media and data from mobile phones .
Given the popularity of social media , infectious disease surveillance systems that use data-sharing technologies to accurately track social media data could potentially inform early warning systems and outbreak response , and facilitate communication between healthcare providers and local , national and international health authorities .
There are four main reasons why your medical practice should leverage social media using sites such as Twitter , and Facebook , which can
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