Blogging for Better Health: Putting the “Public” Back in Public Health
The article “Blogging for Better Health” is very relevant to the topic I am studying because they both have to do with health-related matters. It discusses how many people now use blogs to get information and also express their feelings. This is an important new form of communication for patients as they are now able to read what other people are saying, perhaps discussing their personal experience with a certain disease or health care professionals passing along information about how to best treat a certain illness. The blog also allows people to see what others say about their situation for support. According to the article this support usually comes in the form of emotional support but can also come in the form of informational support; I’m sure the bloggers appreciate any kind of support they can get which they would not have had otherwise without the blog.
Without a doubt if an epidemic of Avian Influenza were to break out people would be blogging about it and hopefully a panic would not occur because of it. There are already some people, who see Avian Influenza as a killer and seem to be trying to spread the word by fear, but this is unnecessary in my eyes and there are better ways to communicate the risk. But health care professionals would probably be putting up blogs as well dealing with the symptoms of their patients and this may even be used as a fast way to communicate between doctors as if an outbreak does happen speed of communication will be an important part to stopping it.
If you enjoyed these health blogs you may want to check out the filter blog Health Blogging which links to numerous health blogging sites which you may find interesting. They also have a section dedicated to Avian Influenza Blogs.
Ethical Issues
The article on ethics was also interesting in relation to risk communication and the subject of Avian Influenza. Ethical issues are an important matter because what ethics really are is the distinction between right and wrong dictated by morals, which are the ideas of right and wrong. Risk communicators must be careful as to try to be morally right, while also doing what is in their best interest. This can come into play when trying to communicate the risk of an Avian Influenza pandemic because the risk communicators should get as much information to the public as possible, but also must take into account that a panic may ensue if that information is very unnerving. On the other hand if the public finds out they withheld information they would be very upset and their trust of the government, or whoever the risk communicator is, would surely decline.
