First let’s put all this technology in context.“Measuring the Information Society”is an annual report from the International Telecommunication Union. Each new edition highlights key trends in information and communication technology at the global, regional, and national levels and traces changes in the digital divide over the past decade. It’s an incomporable resource for statistics, supplemented by ITU’s online database. Download the free PDF:  http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/ict/publications/idi/2010/index.html

Equally fascinating and bursting with information is The World Telecommunication/ICT Development Report, “Monitoring the WSIS Targets: A mid-term review.” WSIS was the World Summit on the Information Society, a landmark event in 2005 which addressed access to information via communication technologies as a global issue and set targets to coincide with the Millennial Development Goals for 2015. Here’s the PDF.
http://www.itu.int/dms_pub/itu-d/opb/ind/D-IND-WTDR-2010-PDF-E.pdf

Blog entry continues…….

 E-learning: E-learning technically is any kind of learning supported by electronics (like our classes in the computer lab) but generally people use the term to mean “distance learning,” which means learning without being in close physical proximity to your professor or colleagues. E-learning is an enormous field, and an intriguing career path—here in the US and in other developed countries, schools are offering e-learning to boost enrollment. In other settings, it’s a necessity and holds enormous potential.

Hot off the press is the latest issue of the ICTUpdate newsletter which–perfectly timed for our improvised distance learning session–focuses on e-learning. The newsletter itself is available via email, online, or print i.e. multiple channels to reach the broadest audience possible with diverse access and preferences. It will give you a good sense of issues, innovative and effective programs, and additional resources. Because there is SUCH a wealth of info in this issue, you might want to start with the featured articles (I couldn’t find a table of contents) but there also are editorials, resources, and lots more. You can sign up to receive these in the future as well, the topic changes with each issue. ICT Update: E-learning   http://ictupdate.cta.int/en/Regulars/Q-A/(issue)/58

Meducation is both a community and a repository of learning resources, including practice exam questions for medical education.  www.meducation.net

Social media:  Anyone using social media to achieve a communication goal needs to stay abreast of the almost-daily changing demographics of who’s-using-what. Fortunately for those of us working in resource-poor settings (including NGOs in rich countries) corporations are pouring billions of dollars into tracking and analyzing this information, and their monitoring efforts can provide part of the picture you compile about your target audience. Here’s a rich compilation of recent data presented as infographics—visual display of information that can be quickly grasped. The blog you’ll link to only shows a screenshot of the original—click on any image that interests you and you’ll be directed to the full original. In addition to accessing all this free data about lots of social media platforms, you’ll no doubt come across sources you’ll want to bookmark or follow. 65 Terrific Social Media Infographics: http://socialmediatoday.com/pamdyer/266010/65-terrific-social-media-infographics

The alarming intensity with which corporations are monitoring and tapping into social media trends to inform their (sometimes diabolical) marketing efforts, and our need to do the same for health promotion purposes, is discussed in an article, “Gone viral? Heard the buzz? A guide for public health practitioners and researchers on how Web 2.0 can subvert advertising restrictions and spread health information” which is available as a PDF in the Related Resources section of this session in Blackboard.

All this social media activity requires some policy to guide it. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where I work, has developed social media policies for its employees. Social Media Governance aggregates links to hundreds of corporate, nonprofit, and institutional social media policies which, if you enjoy reading a good policy, is available here: www.socialmediagovernance.com. 

A keeper for your digital library is CDC’s social media guidelines: http://cdc.gov/SocialMedia/Tools/guidelines/

Many of your program profiles. To learn more about using radio as a communication strategy, check out Radio Broadcasting for Health: A Decision Maker’s Guide, a 50-page guide to radio broadcasting strategies that promote health for economically poor people. It advocates a people-centred and rights-based approach to health communications within the context of global efforts to reduce the burden of disease and ill health on poor people. Topics include formative research and evaluation, health message development, and format options. Information for Communication and Development, 2004.
http://www.who.int/management/programme/health_promotion/RadioBroadcastingHealth.pdf

Television also was part of many of your program profiles. For those of you interested in this aspect of health communication, check out the Norman Lear Center (http://blog.learcenter.org/) which consults with the television and film industry to encourage promotion of accurate health messages in entertainment (think Grey’s Anatomy, etc) and the Harvard School of Public Health’s School of Health Communication, where you can learn about many of their mass communication campaigns to promote behavior change and policy. One thing we can thank them for is the designated driver! http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/research/chc/

In case it continues to snow and you have lots of time and energy for more reading, learning, and exploring, additional information, examples, and resources are posted under “Related resources to explore and use” section of this session’s Blackboard section and on my Twitter page. Among the more scintillating, a new Pew report on health topic internet searches (http://pewrsr.ch/ib6jjh) and a commentary on the role of Wikipedia in global health promotion (http://www.jmir.org/2011/1/e14/.

A BBC survey of more than 27,000 adults in 26 countries found that 87% of internet users felt internet access should be the “fundamental right of all people” and more than 70% of non-users felt that they should have access to the net.

Countries such as Finland and Estonia have already ruled that access is a human right for their citizens. International bodies such as the UN are also pushing for universal net access.

South Korea (96%), Mexico, Brazil and Turkey (90%) most strongly supported the idea of net access as a right.

A majority of users in Japan, South Korea and Germany felt that they could not express their opinions safely online. In Nigeria, India and Ghana there was more confidence about speaking out.

PDF of survey results: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/08_03_10_BBC_internet_poll.pdf

“The internet’s birth was in the depths of the Cold War, created for scientists to exchange some very hot data–the design and testing of nuclear weapons, for instance. Its transformation from its militaristic beginnings to where it stands now should be seen as the greatest ‘swords into plowshares’ story in the history of mankind. Because today, while its origins are at best dimly remembered, what it has morphed into has gone far, far beyond the original intent–and changed our planet and our way of life as a result.” (Chris Weigant, “From the Pentagon To Monty Python: The Internet Turns 40″ Huffington Post.)

In 1985, Dr. Bernard Lown received the Nobel Peace Prize for co-founding International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and used the prize money to purchase a low-earth-orbit satellite and create a new organization, SatelLife, which began transmitting health information to people in developing countries. His goal was to transform the technology of “star wars” to “star health,” he said at the time. He founded ProCor in 1997 to promote cardiovascular disease prevention using low-cost communication technologies, which have emerged far beyond the internet to include a range of digital formats and wireless devices that augment or even replace the internet in many settings.

Dr. Lown told me today that he “wanted people to be able to look up at the sky with hope, not fear.” The general response to his earliest efforts was, “You’re nuts.” Lown-like, he persevered and schemed, leveraging his relationship with Gorbachev to meet with the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow. He convinced them to sign an agreement to launch his proposed satellite. Agreement in hand, others became willing supporters of his “nutty” idea.

Internet addresses containing non-Latin characters will be online soon thanks to a decision announced on the internet’s 40th birthday. More than one billion people worldwide are using the internet. China tops the list, representing nearly 20% of its audience. Japan is third, with 6%, India seventh. Russia and South Korea also are among the top 15 countries. “The coming introduction of non-Latin characters represents the biggest technical change to the Internet since it was created four decades ago,” said Peter Dengate Thrush, President of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) at a board meeting in Seoul, South Korea. “Right now internet address endings are limited to Latin characters–A to Z. But the Fast Track Process is the first step in bringing the 100,000 characters of the languages of the world online for domain names. This is only the first step, but it is an incredibly big one and an historic move toward the internationalization of the internet.” (ICANN announcement)

Some things never change, though. During transmission of its first message, “LOGIN,” the internet crashed and “LO” was all that was delivered. With the advent of instant messaging and text messaging, a new electronic language has developed, and reading about the inaugural internet crash made me LOL.

While acknowledging that the internet has limitations and presents challenges, let’s today celebrate the birthday of an innovation that has done much, and holds much more potential, to connect and contribute to our global community.

PDAs, handheld devices: Satellife trains villagers to collect local health data using PDAs, which also can store medical textbooks and other digital resources. SatelLife  www.healthnet.org

Email networks: Many people—those with little or no connectivity and those who use Blackberries and iPhones 24/7—can quickly and easily access email. Globalink, an electronic advocacy community, is credited with being key to the ratification of the Framework Contention on Tobacco Control, the first global public health treaty. Globalink www.globalink.org

CD Roms: Many people use computers without access to the internet. CD ROMS can be viewed, copied, shared. E-talc distributions hundreds of thousands of health CD ROMs each year in developing countries. E-talc www.talcuk.org

Open access journals: Open access journals–part of the “copy-left” movement which advocates for free access to knowledge–publish peer-reviewed articles which can be accessed at no cost. Further, publishing shortens the time lag between when articles are accepted and when they are read. BiomedCentral is an open access publisher of hundreds of journals. Biomedcental www.biomedcentral.org

Websites: This one’s so obvious I almost forgot to include it. Websites can be integrated with many of these other technologies. ProCor’s website is integrated with an email news and discussion forum, briding the digital divide to promote heart health. ProCor www.procor.org

Music videos: An Australian program created hip hop music videos to reach aboriginals with anti-smoking messages. The videos were disseminated via mobile phones. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/10/01/2701656.htm

Free online courses: Credit and non-credit courses can be offered online. People’s Open Access Educational Initiative is staffed by volunteers. http://people-uni.org

Open-source knowledge management systems: Course curricula and materials can be shared or co-taught with universities around the world, and students in different countries can take courses together. Software can be licensed at virtually no cost. TUSK: http://tusk.tufts.edu

Videoconferencing: For media, students, health professionals. Can be used to reach people in rural areas, and bring together participants from around the world.

Satellite radio: Radio offers widespread dissemination of health information.  First Voice International. www.firstvoiceint.org

Text messaging: Text messages can be used in numerous ways–for example, to increase medication compliance and and to encourage health behaviors. Ethiopia’s 2.5 million mobile users mobile phone users received free HIV/AIDS tests prior to Ethiopian New Year celebrations on September 11, 2009: “New Year! New Life! Test for HIV, test with your partner, get your children tested and brighten the future of your family! Free testing. Happy New Year!” http://www.moh.gov.et/

Wikis:  A “wiki” like Wikipedia allows online collaborative content creation. Medpedia has been created by physicians. www.medpedia.com

On-line lectures: Supercourse is an open-source library of more than 4000 public health lectures that can be downloaded and freely used. www.pitt.edu/~super1

PDFs: For people with limited connectivity, downloading PDFs onto a pen drive to read later is a convenient, low-cost way to access knowledge.  World Health Organization library.  www.who.int

Downloadable books: PDF versions of entire publications. Hesperian is a non-profit publisher of books and newsletters for community-based health care.  Where There Is No Doctor is considered to be one of the most accessible and widely used community health books in the world. www.hesperian.org

Digital clearinghouses: Repositories of downloadable health materials. Of course my favorite is the Massachusetts Health Promotion Clearinghouse, which I helped establish: www.maclearinghouse.com. 

Facebook:  Facebook has launched  a “lite” site to increase use by people in low-bandwidth settings (http://www.insidefacebook.com/2009/09/10/facebook-lite-reveals-bigger-changes-afoot/). Even the venerable New England Journal of Medicine has a Facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/TheNewEnglandJournalofMedicine

LinkedIn: Excellent networking site for professionals, lots of specialized groups you can join.  LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/in/catherinecoleman

Blogs: Like this one. An easy way to have your own web presence, share experiences and knowledge. Be warned, tho, it takes time and stamina to keep your blog fresh. Nevertheless, go ahead and start one today!  WordPress www.wordpress.com

Twitter: People are “tweeting” from conferences, promoting their organizations.  I’m not there yet–I truly don’t understand where people find the time.  Tweets are kind of like 140-character mundane Haikus. Twitter  www.twitter.com

There are more, to be sure, and more coming every day. The potential is exciting. The challenge is to remain focused on the audience–in the end, a real person–and only employ technology to the extent that it is both necessary and effective in reaching him or her.

“Information needs of health workers in developing countries: a literature review with a focus on Africa.” Human Resources for Health 2009 (7:30). Summary of literature conducted for ProCor by GHI-net. www.human-resources-health.com/content/7/1/30 

Health Information for All by 2015 (HIFA2015)
www.hifa2015.org
Discussion forum focused on meeting the information needs of health workers in developing countries

The Economist: Mobile marvels: A special report on telecoms in emerging markets (September 24, 2009)
http://www.economist.com/specialreports/displayStory.cfm?story_id=14483896#

 Bulletin of the World Health Organization September 2009 special theme issue on public health communication: http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/87/9/en/index.html
“Directions in health communication” http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/87/9/09-070680/en/print.html

Communication Initiative: Extensive repository of global resources, experiences, and program models. www.comminit.org

“ Leapfrog technologies for health and development“: Excellent overview article rom Global Forum Update on Research for Health Vol 5.
http://www.globalforumhealth.org/Media-Publications/Publications/Global-Forum-Update-on-Research-for-Health-Volume-5/Global-Forum-Update-on-Research-for-Health-Volume-5-Fostering-innovation-for-global-health-Individual-articles

“Industry goes viral”: Industry is one step–or more–ahead of public health in using the latest technologies to reach their audiences (with unhealthy messages). Read it and weep–and start taking advantage of the same technologies to promote health.
http://tobacco.health.usyd.edu.au/site/futuretc/docs/Web%202.0%20JECH%20article.pdf

Many years ago, Boston politicomedian Jimmy Tingle proposed an alternative to capital punishment or making “Life Free or Die” license plates: Provide prison populations with stationary bikes and harness the energy generated from cycling.  Like a self-winding watch on an institutional scale.

But what about setting us ALL to cycling and generating our own power?  I read this week about a personally powered computer workstation–I picture it like the treadmills at the gym with their own little television/monitors on top. 

In developing countries they use bicycle power to run computers, recharge batteries, etc. Nothing like necessity to mother some invention.

Now there’s a way that,  simply by walking, we can charge our everyday devices like cell phones and Ipods. If you power-walk for one minute, you can generate about 13 watts of electrcity, which will give you about 30 minutes of talk time on a typical mobile phone.

Even cooler, the process, “called generative braking” and analagous to the braking systems in hybrid-electric cars, is being applied to prosthetics so amputees can charge up their assistive limbs instead of schlepping around heavy power generators (one of those ways that life can be so damn unfair sometimes. Here, I’m taking away your limb and giving you a fake one plus the millstone you need lug around to make it move). 

The energy harvesting field (I love when life just hands me a pun) “seeks to develop devices and mechanisms to recover otherwise-wasted energy and convert it into useful electrical energy. ”

Our body fat stores the equivalent of about a 1,000 kg battery.  I would be grateful for the opportunity to turn last night’s mac-and-cheese dinner into something useful.

I really am grateful to the geniuses who are working on this stuff because people do have the power and if we use it we can probably save the world or at least save some whales and some rainforests.

 http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2008/207/1

 

“Worldwide web” is a misnomer–because most of the world lacks access to it. But communicators and others who are accustomed to broadband find this impossible to imagine. If we put information on the web with the assumption that people everywhere can access it, what we’re really doing is putting it out of the reach of most of the world. Yes, information and communication technology in developing countries is increasing.  In countries like Singapore, Korea, Croatia, and Belarus, it rivals or exceeds that of developed countries. But most developing countries “lag behind” because broadband internet service hasn’t caught one.  But they’re way ahead of us when it comes to wireless technologies, and the answer to “can you hear me now” is a resounding “Yes” in developing countries. More than half the world’s mobile phone subscribers (58%) are in developing countries. Subscribers have tripled in the past 5 years. The greatest growth is in Asia and Africa, where there 50 million new people became mobile subscribers in 2006. In 2007, total mobile subscriptions reached about 200 million–that’s more than 20 active cell phones per 100 persons.

In Ghana, growth was from 8% to 23%! Buying, selling, and banking are all happening via cell phones.

[Quick cut to a recent New Yorker cartoon: man laying on psychiatrist's couch: "I feel wired. I want to feel wireless."]

 Internet availability in the rich countries countries is 6 times higher than in developing countries.  The “broadband gap” has widened and in fact is worsening the digital divide. Rich countries develop business (and other) applications specifically for broadband. So poor countries can’t adopt those applications.

But I bet they’re coming up with things that will make us all wish we felt “wireless.”

The focus of the new Information Economy Report 2007-2008 is, yes, on the role of ICT on economy but the data is valuable to everyone promoting access to information, which, as we know, is “priceless.”  Download it from http://www.unctad.org.  

Consider the potential applications for health comm, like reaching audiences with limited literacy!

PS for any musicians:  The phone was co-developed by Ray Kurzweil who developed the first synthesizer that sounded just like a piano (or any other instrument, combination of instruments, animal,  accident, etc.) .

ABC News: http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/GadgetGuide/wireStory?id=4198673