Trusera

HealthCentral/IAC Announce Ad Network

Barry Diller's IAC and HealthCentral today announced a new ad network focused creating a "high-quality ad network for pharmaceutical and health and wellness marketers."  The agreement combines the heft of IAC -- which owns Citysearch, Evite, Match.com, and Ticketmaster -- with the health focus (and health demographic) of HealthCentral.  HealthCentral runs a number of condition-specific sites in the health space, including AcidRefluxConnection, MyBreastCancerNetwork, DiabeTeens, and many, many more.   IAC took a stake in HealthCentral back in January.

A couple of really interesting questions are raised by this deal:

1. Will this finally meaning the emergence of a health-focused vertical ad network or is this simply an ad swap between two large players?
2. In a world of consumers increasingly concerned about "Big Pharma," how will consumers react?
3. How will user-generated content on IAC's properties (and HealthCentral, itself) and direct-to-consumer advertising get along?

Here are some links for more information about this new announcement:

HealthPopuli's Jane Sarasohn-Kahn on this announcement.

MediaWeek on the Ad network deal

Original press release of this ad network

CNET coverage of the original investment in January

Jude O'Reilley
Trusera

Writing as Cancer Treatment

We talk a lot about how the Internet is changing the face of health in this space.  Scientists are also pointing to evidence beyond the browser to support actively engaged health consumers.  In a seven-year study recently published in The Oncologist, cancer patients writing about their condition experienced "better physical quality of life at follow-up."    This is not news to the thousands of people online blogging about conditions like breast cancer.

Implementing an Expressive Writing Study in a Cancer Clinic
NANCY P. MORGAN, KRISTI D. GRAVES, ELIZABETH A. POGGI, BRUCE D. CHESON

The Oncologist, Vol. 13, No. 2, 196-204, February 2008; doi:10.1634/theoncologist.2007-01

Jude O'Reilley
Trusera

Growing Up: New Science, New Attitudes, and the New Health Consumer

It's easy to get caught up in the perceived conflict between doctors and the Internet.  There is a stereotype that the "medical establishment," occasionally confirmed by the American Medical Association or by individual doctors, is fundamentally threatened  by the Web and much of what Web consumers stand for.

Industry luminary Susannah Fox recently referred to one of the opening salvos in this war, the AMA's infamous New Year's Resolution press release from Dec 2001: "If you have questions, trust your physician, not a chat room."   The message that many on the Web took away was shut off your browser and go talk to a professional.  The AMA's comment is reinforced by years of eye-rolling from some in the medical community about what happens when patients become consumers.

The Research
We've come a long way since 2001 on both sides of this debate.   In the past few years, scientific research has begun to validate consumers taking charge of their health, on- and off-line.   A 2006 BMJ article demonstrated the self-healing nature of Internet health information: scrutiny by an engaged community corrected false or misleading information in under five hours on average.  Of the 4600 postings they analyzed, only 10 (0.22%) were considered false or misleading by a panel of experts.  Of those 10, seven were were identified as such by other listserv members. 

As consumers and the scientific community evolve, so has portions of the medical community.  A recent journal article by Dr. Bohannon Mason demonstrates how far some in the medical community have come.  In a wide-ranging and thoughtful article, Dr. Mason urges his colleagues in the medical community to think differently about their role. 

"Like it or not, we are experiencing a paradigm shift away from the traditional surgeon goals of infection rates, radiolucencies, and survivorship to those goals now imposed by our patients ... In a modern society pressured by time, quality of life is the new mantra of our patients." 

Doctors are facing what we could label the New Health Consumer.  Health consumption has changed, shaped by demographic change, the information revolution, heightened expectations, improved medical practices, and direct-to-consumer advertising, Mason notes.  Doctors need to become "interpreters and balancers of scientific information" to support consumers are they wade through the maze of health information and misinformation.

Bottom Line
The world of health online is a dramatically different place in 2008, than it was in 2001.  Increasingly vocal corners of the medical and scientific community are seeking to understand and adapt to the Internet, user-generated content, and a new era of consumer-focused health.  Driven by intense consumer need, the tools available to us--well-trafficked blogs, increasingly sophisticated communities, and more--are helping us go from being patients to true health consumers.

Sources and Related Links:

Accuracy and self correction of information received from
an internet breast cancer list: content analysis
Adol Esquivel, Funda Meric-Bernstam, Elmer V Bernstam

BMJ  2006;332:939-942 (22 April), doi:10.1136/bmj.38753.524201.7C (published 2 March 2006)

The New Demands by Patients in the Modern Era of Total Joint Arthroplasty
A Point of View
J. Bohannon Mason MD

Clin Orthop Relat Res (2008) 466:146–152

Special thanks to Jane Sarasohn-Kahn at HealthPopuli for her coverage of the research above and to the crew at Our Own System for their post on Dr. Mason's research.

--

Jude O'Reilley
Trusera

Help Trusera Members Support Gilda's Club

We all know someone affected by cancer. Here's a practical, powerful way to help.

Trusera is teaming up with Gilda's Club this month to support cancer stories.   For every person who shares their experience of cancer on Trusera before April 15th, we'll donate $10 to Gilda's Club, the worldwide network providing support for those living with cancer, up to $5000. Gilda's Club was founded in honor of comedian Gilda Radner, who died of ovarian cancer in 1989.Trusera Members Support Gilda's Club

We're looking for personal experience, recommendations and tips from people who've experienced cancer personally or through a friend or family member. 

To make sure that your story is included in this fund-raiser, please note "Gilda's Club" in your request for membership and list it as a keyword in your story.

Please take a minute to help us spread the word and support this great cause.

Thanks for your support,

Jude O'Reilley
Trusera

Trusera Announces Open Beta at Health 2.0 Show

Today, we announced the beginning of the Trusera Open Beta at the Health 2.0 show in San Diego, CA. Trusera is the network where individuals connect through firsthand health experiences to take action.  With today's announcement, the Trusera network is available as a free, web-based service offering access to relevant, credible health experiences and the people behind them.

"We believe experience inspires people to take action," says Keith Schorsch, Trusera's Founder and CEO.  "We are creating a network of friends who've been there." According to iCrossing's January 2008 Report How America Searches, 34% of internet health searchers have used social media to solve a health problem. According to iCrossing, when consumers use social media they tend to be "in decision mode."

Trusera's patent-pending technology ensures that those decisions are supported by relevant, credible information.  To support relevance, Trusera's provides tag-enhanced search.   To support credible information on the network, all information posted on the site has a profile of the user behind it.   Users can see how closely they align to the attitudes and interests of the author and view the community's comments and compliments.  To support action, Trusera provides complete Collections of health information, including stories, people, and recommended resources.

"Experienced health consumers want a place to pay it forward, a place to provide tips so no one has to go through what they went through,” notes Keith Schorsch, a Lyme disease survivor.  With the announcement of our Open Beta, Trusera has opened the network up to a new world of potential.  Try Trusera now at www.trusera.com.

The Spirit and Promise of Health 2.0: Empowering the Person, not the Patient

Keith Schorsch is the Founder and CEO of Trusera.  Keith was recently a featured blogger on the Health Care Blog, Matthew Holt's pioneering blog about Health 2.0, the space where consumers, health, and emerging web technologies meet. We have republished it below.  This is the first in a series of posts live from the Health 2.0 show this week in San Diego, CA.

Health 2.0 is about redefining the role of consumers in our health life. We are experiencing a sea change in consumer attitude, a growing understanding that we must be our own best advocate for personal and family health. We no longer live in a one-source world where we can rely solely upon a physician to inform our decisions about health. 

Men and women are flocking to the Internet in increasing numbers looking for health information. We want access to multiple points of view on conditions, treatments, exercise and nutrition to make better decisions about our health.  The vision of someone armed with the right information--with the power to make personal health decisions--is a compelling one.   But this vision cannot be achieved without addressing a central flaw in the current system - our focus on patients, rather than people. Online and offline, we are not fully acknowledged as multi-dimensional people who desire and pursue an active role in our health lives.

Deloitte's recently released its 2008 Survey of Health Care Consumers.  The survey provides useful information on the behaviors, attitudes, and unmet needs of adult consumers.   The report illustrates that a large segment of the US population attitudes and behaviors reflect a bias toward taking charge of one's own health.    Deloitte identifies three customer segments (Sick and Savvy, Online & Onboard, and Out and About) totaling 41% of adult health consumers that have medium to high engagement with the health care system and are inclined to take charge of their health.   A fourth segment (Casual and Cautious) totaling 28% are inclined to rely more on themselves than doctors.   In fact, just 28% of health care consumers (Content and Compliant) are inclined to simply accept what doctors recommend.

Webster's defines a patient as an "individual awaiting or under medical care and treatment;" "the recipient of any of various personal services," and "one that is acted upon."    To me, none of these does justice to the ethos of the online health consumer today. Consumers are actively seeking and stitching together fragmented pieces of data and trying to assemble them into a framework that relates to their personal context and preferences.   We do so because we want to take action and make decisions about health that relate to our personal experience.

We cannot make the transition successfully to the "empowered health consumer" if the products and services we build to serve consumers treat them as patients with a condition and not individuals with complex needs who advocate for their own health.

I recently met a 38-year-old woman who had just been diagnosed with breast cancer and told me that she doesn't want to be defined by her condition.   She is a mother of two trying to figure out how to talk to her kids about breast cancer, how tamoxifen will feel, how to integrate her preference for natural medicine, where to find a wig if her hair falls out.    But she also loves yoga, is concerned about the impact of a mastectomy on her sex life, and is a person of faith who is highly involved in her local church.   She does not want to be defined by her condition - she wants to tailor treatment and solutions to her life, her personal needs and her preferences.   She's frustrated by her attempts to connect to information, resources and people that can help her move forward that relate to her personal experience.

We have a tremendous opportunity to serve this person and others like her with current and future technologies.    We need to build products and services that acknowledge that we are not just the sum of our conditions, but instead are active, multi-dimensional participants in our health lives and decisions.    That is the spirit and promise of Health 2.0.

Tell Your Story, Raise Money for Autism

Are you or is someone you know affected by the autism spectrum disorders?

Your story about the autism spectrum could change someone's life. Dealing with autism can mean feeling very alone. Remember what it felt like to discover a world of people going through the same thing? Help others learn from your experience at Trusera. Trusera is creating the Internet's largest collection of health stories. From now through March 7th, Trusera is donating $10 to AutismSpeaks for every story from a person affected by autism (up to a maximum of $5000). To learn more about Trusera, please see sign up for the preview at www.trusera.com/corp/preview. Just put the word "donation" in the "How did you hear about Trusera?" field and you'll receive details on the program and an invitation to get started.

And feel free to spread the word with others!

People are Talking on Trusera

Our goal is to create more than a web site; we're starting a conversation.  Now, after months of working on our own, people are talking inside Trusera! We're looking for health experience with a purpose: to educate, to inspire so that each of us has the opportunity to learn from all of us. Thank you to our Charter Members who've done so much to help us get started. 

Here's a little peek of what's going on inside:

MINDY, talking about her experience of Undifferentiated Connective Tissue Disease:
"Through all of this, the hardest thing has been explaining to other people what I'm going through. While most of my family understands, of course no one can ever know exactly what another person is going through. But for my friends (not everyone, but most) it's been a real struggle to know what I'm trying to tell them. I've tried saying, "picture the most painful flu you've ever had, and spread it out over a month."

jessbowers, relating what it's like to support someone with Multiple Sclerosis (MS):
"Everyday I wish that MS wasn't a reality, and that we might wake up to find that the 13 lesions, or a copay of $900 a month for his infusions were just another part of some horrible dream, but this is real life, and all we can do is make the most of what we're given...The only way to do this is to be our own advocates. Be passionate about learning all we can, and doing EVERYTHING we can to put this disease on hold so that it doesn't do the same to our lives. I'm learning that having a passion for something can only enrich your life."

mattk, talking about his twins who survived a dangerous birth complication:
"I have two beautiful twin girls who are survivors of "twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome". I've learned a lot about the disease. My girls went thru a number of surgeries before they were born to correct the syndrome. It all has a happy ending... In response to all the great support from the medical staff, family, and friends, I've created a non profit called Climb For Kids in order to give back to the community."

Theresesurvivor, sharing the experience of being a six-time cancer survivor. 
"I just had a gut feeling there might be something going on in there!  I always tell women to follow their gut instinct.  Doctors are wonderful, we need them but they are human and aren’t always right. We know our bodies better than anyone.  That’s why it’s vital that we pay attention to them.  And please don’t be afraid to be proactive and even pushy in your health care.  If you “sense” something might not be right, pay attention to that sense and push.  They say the more pesky, annoying patients tend to live longer…I might just be proof of that."

Interested in joining the conversation?  Sign up for our Preview and we'll drop you an invitation. We'd love to hear your story.

Startup Weekend in Seattle

When is building a business not about making money?  When it's about building community.  Keith Schorsch and I just attended Seattle's version of Startup Weekend.  The weekend is meant to emulate a year in the life of a start-up: 54 hours from Friday to Sunday night to pitch, plan, and launch a web company. 

Friday started with a bang and burst of great ideas.  Our founder and MC Andrew Hyde--Andrew has conducted 13 or so of these from LA to Hamburg--asked us to pitch our ideas.  There were more than a 100 developers, Product Managers, lawyers, and many others in the room.  After a fairly good-natured-but-contentious debate across the whole team, we chose to create a new and improved RideShare program, ride share for the rest of use --  "Ride Share on Your Terms!" -- and got to work.

Like many a great idea, we plowed headfirst into it and then realized that someone had this idea already: right here in Seattle, a company called ReadySetGoose.  I was on the marketing team, we realized that all of the issues that we highlighted in our customer problem analysis: flexibility, trust, availability--Goose was already on.  RideShare had already been, well, new and improved.

Despite all these ups-and-downs, the weekend was a great time and may just result in a useful web product.  After we bailed on the ride share idea, we choose to become a skills management platform.  In contrast to the chaotic din of Friday, Satruday and Sunday settled into a productive hum.  We chose the name SkillBit and got to work.  As of Monday morning, it looked like were still in stealth mode. Check out the results here!

Jude O'Reilley
Trusera

Top 10 Personal Health Blogs

There are more than 70,000 health sites online and growing every day.  Here at Trusera, we spend a lot of time on personal blogs about health and wellness issues.  In our 2007 Top Ten list, we're highlighting sites that have a first hand, consumer-oriented point of view on a variety of health issues. 

Naturally, the opinions expressed on these sites are the responsibility of their authors and not necessarily the opinion of Trusera.

Here are some of our favorites from 2007:

http://diabetesmine.com/ A goldmine of information from a PWD, "person with diabetes," including studies, advocacy in the community, and reflections from her personal experience.  Check out her blog on Do's and Don'ts for supporting people with Diabetes.

http://www.findingoptimism.com/  It's hard to find good mental health resources online. Finding Optimism has helpful, firsthand thoughts for people suffering from depression, their friends and family.  Check out this entry on tips for caring for a depressed person.

http://insureblog.blogspot.com/ This blog provides straight talk about insurance plans and politics and the business side of personal health from a group of HR professionals. Check out this entry on borrowing and health insurance.

http://www.chronicbabe.com/ Started by a woman with fibromyalgia, chronic babe is an active blog about women and chronic illness, includes a wide variety of angles including sex, wellness, and patient advocacy. Check out this blog about the importance of double-checking prescriptions at the pharmacy.

http://childhoodall.blogspot.com/ This is a UK-based blog from a mother of a child with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. She provides an active caregiver's point of view on supporting a child with a serious illness.

http://www.emergiblog.com/ A great look at nursing from the inside-out from a veteran Emergency and Critical Care nurse.  This is a great place for conversations between health professionals that offer a unique view for the rest of us.

http://www.lmsdr.org/patient.php This is a foundation-run site about a very rare and aggressive form of cancer, Leiomyosarcoma. Their patient-to-patient blog includes treatment stories from all over the world.  A great example of the web's potential is to connect people with rare conditions.

http://www.thedoctorweighsin.com/ "The Doctor" is actually five doctors from around the U.S. that write about "fat, fitness, health, and longevity from a medical point of view."  Great source of current medical information about the science of living better.  Here's an entry on "Going Organic without Going Broke."

http://runningahospital.blogspot.com/ This is blog run by Paul Levy, the President and CEO of a large hospital in Boston, MA.  He reflects on the hospital, health, and healthcare system challenges. A rare view from the inside.

http://www.hungry-girl.com/  "Hungry Girl" blogs about food, dieting, and healthy eating from the consumer's point of view. Planning a new year diet? Check out her Best 100-calorie snacks of 2007.

Enjoy! 

Happy New Year to You and Yours from All of Us At Trusera.