healthcare
"Block Party" NeighborSourcing
Once upon a time, we all knew our neighbors.
We knew Daisy, the golden retriever addicted to soggy tennis balls. We knew the saggy sofa in the den, stained by one too many Strawberry Jello spills by the kids. We knew the noise of the lawnmower, the squeek of the garage door or the buzz of the doorbell. We knew just when we'd hear footsteps slogging up the stairway or when the elevator would ping open.
Now. in all too many cases, we only see 'neighborhood' on Sunday nights via Desperate Housewives or via Big Brother.
One of the best things about knowing your neighbors was knowing things like which house has the twins with chicken pox . . . which street has a couple of persistent gushers bubbling up . . . who has been 'down' with the flu or fighting breast cancer . . what new building/development is going on . . is that creek still flowing or drying up . . .
If we all still had BLOCK PARTIES, yes, that remnant of the 50's or 60's or whatever Leave It To Beaver era in which those organic mob-projects occurred, maybe we would have enough information to protect us and each other.
Yes, there are a wide variety of domestic and international public health/service agencies that track disease, safety issues, environmental trends, etc. But there are certainly legions of examples of why perhaps even the most ethical of public or corporate organizations seldom tell the whole or even the most realistic stories.
Which is why we must tap into the power of citizen journalism . . . or Neighbor-Sourcing to complete a realistic picture of health trends of all kinds, from traditional health care issues (including insurance) to environmental and safety. By harvesting glocallogy tools such as mapping, crowdsourcing and even crowdfunding, we may be able to act more quickly on trends, problems -- or opportunities -- as they occur. We need not wait for the government to announce issues long after it is too late to do something.
Neighbor-Sourcing info on a variety of significant local concerns and opportunities which allows 'Block Party' reporting to be transformed into relevant maps and or RSS notifications of urgent/pending issues.
As the 'guru of new', I have a rich, robust background in new product development, including participating in a number of incubators -- most notably as one of the first members of AOL's pioneering Greenhouse back in the dinosaur days of the 'Internets.' (I actually have a print-out of an email from Al Gore, once know as Auto-Al, for those of trying to get our projects launched with White House support.)
I have long experience in the health care category as well, working with hospitals, pharmaceuticals, physicians, etc.
And I live in a small town neighborhood environment in the sticks of Carmel Valley. But I still don't know many of my neighbors.
A complete team + neighbors.
CareFlash... Community when it matters most
CareFlash delivers unprecedented healthcare advocacy and education to people in the richest circumstances imaginable, while offering philanthropic benefits to healthcare foundations, advocacy groups and religious institutions. This mashup integrates advocacy, animations, medical info and web 2.0.
When someone learns they (or their loved one) have been diagnosed with a chronic healthcare challenge, a flurry of painful emotions appear ranging from fear and feelings of aloneness, to anxiety, uncertainty and even depression. As families navigate this experience together, it commonly becomes clear that people are unprepared and inexperienced at the realities of serving as caretakers. We address these challenges, empowering users to:
Post updates in a private blog, which are automatically sent via email to the community members. These CareFlashes can eliminate 30-40 conversations a day for a caretaker, freeing them to provide substantial attention to the patient. CareFlash recipients can reply to the messages and updates with well-wishes, prayers and messages of support. It’s common where the family pastor will engage in these exchanges, bringing strength and faith to all involved.
Educate people on the particular disorder at hand, specific treatment options, and other health concerns through easy to understand 3-D animations, produced by Blausen Medical, the best interactive medical resources available anywhere. They are narrated in everyday English, Spanish and other languages and encompass hundreds of healthcare topics ranging from pregnancy and neonatal issues to cancer, cardiovascular, ears/eyes, neurological, genetic, bladder/kidney, digestive/mouth, endocrine, blood/immune, respiratory, orthopedic, skin/cosmetic and others.
When medical challenges happen, help is continually needed. But egos get in the way, no one wants to be intrusive and, although everyone says “If there’s anything we can do, please let us know…†asking for help is awkward. When help is needed with errands, meals and countless other tasks, entries are easily created allowing people to sign-up to help. Our iHelp Calendar helps ensure that tasks are met when and where it’s convenient for the members, saving the patient from experiences like having 3 families show up with meals one evening or visitation when the patient needs privacy.
To effect this change, CareFlash provides people the ability to interact through a framework to manage all of the moving parts where healthcare circumstances present themselves to a person and their community.
Today alone, 5,400 people in the U.S. learned that they have been diagnosed with cancer. 21 million are currently battling diabetes. 10% of people aged 60 years old have Alzheimer's... and this figure grows exponentially as the 80 million baby boomers continue to age. Across the board, the numbers are scary. CareFlash works through healthcare advocacy groups to assist them in serving people based on the specific circumstances at hand.
The founder of CareFlash spoke at NetSquared Houston in December and, since then, we have formed alliances with the Houston chapter's January and February meeting speakers. Ms. Wheelchair Texas (Jan) and AIDS Foundation Houston (Feb) both deliver highly compelling value, as healthcare advocacy groups, to people in circumstances that really matter. Where life is celebrated, community is engaged, and the quality of life for patients and caretakers are all dramatically improved... CareFlash is the virtual glue that brings this all together... and does so for free.
Input on ways we can be more effective at leveraging other components in our mashup. More independent bloggers (a la a Digg-based model that we're developing), healthcare advocacy groups and healthcare institutions.
