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LONDON, May 21 /PRNewswire/ — Internet developments that brought us sites such as
Facebook, YouTube and Wikipedia are now set to revolutionise healthcare,
according to a new research report from online news service and publisher,
E-Health Insider.

Titled ‘Web 2.0 in the health Sector: Industry Review with a UK
perspective’ the report concludes that new applications based on social
health networks and content generated by health service users themselves -
such as reviews of doctors and hospitals - will rapidly evolve to challenge
existing healthcare systems and create new ways of delivering our healthcare.

The research report details how the application of web 2.0 technologies
is now driving far-reaching changes in healthcare systems in the UK, USA and
Europe, a trend it terms e-health 2.0. The report says those who ignore the
deep trends of e-health 2.0 risk missing the early stages of a social,
economic and technological tectonic shift in healthcare planning and
delivery.

Sir Muir Gray, Chief Knowledge Officer of the NHS, says in his foreword
to the report: “This publication summarises some of the effects of the
revolution and identifies directions in which the revolution will drive in
future. The report of the revolution will, like all reports of revolutions,
please some people and frighten others, but the accuracy and insights are
important for all.”
Produced by award-winning online health IT news service E-Health Insider
‘Web 2.0 in the health Sector: Industry Review with UK Perspective’, examines
how participatory networked web 2.0 technologies - exemplified by Facebook,
YouTube and Wikipedia - are being applied to healthcare.

The report argues that e-health 2.0 will first and foremost be
consumer-led. health is consistently one of the most searched for subjects
online. The application of web 2.0 technologies into health is already
challenging traditional doctor-patient relationships and beginning to place
far greater power in the hands of consumers. These changes are likely to be
rapid and may prove highly disruptive.

The 108-page research report - the most comprehensive undertaken from a
UK perspective on e-health 2.0 - states that a wide range of applications
have already been developed and are in use in health, with early signs of a
groundswell of participation in the traditionally conservative healthcare
sector.

E-Health Insider Research Editor and report author Lindsey Birnsteel,
said: “Though important, this is not just about user generated content
through social networking tools, Wikis, blogs, video clips, or mash-ups. Web
2.0 technologies are now being used for new interactions between patients and
providers.”
Birnsteel pointed to the UK service Patient Opinion as a standard bearer
in connecting public feedback into the development of health services. “With
Patient Opinion the views of the public are being directly fed back into the
NHS to drive service improvements.”
Twenty e-Health 2.0 companies and organisations leading this fast
emerging sector are profiled through questionnaire and follow-up interviews.
The profiles provide a broad cross section of the wide range of e-health 2.0
applications already available. Organisations profiled are drawn from the
USA, UK, India and Germany, and range from small start-ups to giants
including Microsoft and NHS Choices.

The profiles provide a snapshot of innovation across healthcare: from
organisations providing online communities for patients with specific
conditions, tools for chronic disease management, sites that enable patients
to rate the quality of care they receive, together with tools to enable
clinicians to better search for and share research data.

According to Sir Muir, “All health services will be influenced by the
third healthcare revolution in which information technology plays an
important part.”
The report calls on leaders from all areas of healthcare to be aware of
the ways e-health 2.0 is beginning to redefine the practice and business of
healthcare.

It concludes that although at an early stage an e-health 2.0 revolution
is now underway, and makes a series of recommendations for healthcare
providers, commissioners and policy makers on how to make the most of the
opportunities created.

Editors Notes

An executive summary of the ‘Web 2.0 in the health Sector: Industry
Review with UK Perspective’ report is available at
http://www.e-health-insider.com/img/ehi_reports0332/EHI-ehealth_20_research_r
eport_2008_Exec_Summary.pdf.

E-Health Insider http://www.e-healthinsider.com is the award-winning
online news service focused on health IT. Launched in 2001 the service has
over 22,000 registered readers from across the NHS and IT industry.

‘Web 2.0 in the health Sector: Industry Review with Market Analysis’ is a
market research report available for purchase online from E-Health Insider,
http://www.e-health-insider.com/ehi%5Freports/. The report is priced at
GBP500 VAT.

E-Health Insider Research Editor Lindsey Birnsteel is available for
interview on 44(0)207-785-6903 or lindsey@e-health-media.com.

E-Health Insider

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