Highlight HEALTH

Last month, the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) launched a new website, ScienceCures.org, a voter education initiative aimed at raising the profile of federal funding for biomedical research among the presidential candidates and the general public in the U.S..

ScienceCures.org provides a number of interactive resources to learn how NIH-funded scientists are working for cures in your state, what the American people think about supporting research, and how basic research leads to medical advancement.

Through the website, readers can join the ScienceCures Alliance, inform friends of the initiative, view and comment on video content, write a letter to a presidential candidate, join the action team to respond to developments in federal funding legislation and science policy, and learn about the election and register to vote.

With heathcare a central issue of the presidential race, ScienceCures.org will provide scientists the opportunity to express their support for biomedical research while educating voters about the connection between today’s science and tomorrow’s cures. A first step in this effort is a video on YouTube, featuring biologist Sally Moody of George Washington University Medical Center, who asks presidential candidates to renew our investment in biomedical research. FASEB is encouraging all of it’s societies’ members as well as patient advocates and community allies to view and comment on the videos, and to submit their own content.

Additionally, FASEB has provided all the presidential candidates and their campaigns a one-page summary of some of the advancements achieved with National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding of biomedical research. Their letter urges candidates to voice their commitment to the health of America and investment in the NIH. FASEB is also engaging moderators and sponsors of Presidential debates, and altering the media to critical national issues related to medical research.

Robert Palazzo, Ph.D., FASEB President, said [1]:

When Presidential candidates are making speeches or answering questions about health and health care, we want to make sure that the National Institutes of Health and medical research are an integral part of that discussion. Federal funding of biomedical research should be a high priority for the nation in 2008 and beyond.

The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) was founded in 1912 and has consistently provided educational meetings and publications to disseminate biological research results. FASEB is the largest coalition of biomedical research associations in the U.S. with more than 80,000 members in twenty-one member societies, including:

• The American Society for Clinical Investigation
• The American Society for Nutrition
• The American Society of Human Genetics
• The American College of Sports Medicine

The Federation’s mission is to advance biological science through collaborative advocacy for research policies that promote scientific progress and education, and which lead to improvements in human health.

As an additional resource, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) also recently launched http://election2008.aaas.org, Science and Technology in the 2008 Presidential Election, which provides information on the science and technology position of each of the presidential candidates.

What are you doing to support biomedical research? I encourage everyone to join in the call to reinvigorate America’s investment in health research.

References

1. As 2008 Presidential Race Heats Up, FASEB Launches Voter Education Initiative ScienceCures.org. FASEB Press Release. 2008 Jan 15.

I’ve written previously about my desire to explore the use of web 2.0 in health and medicine. Two months ago, I created a page on the Highlight HEALTH Web Directory to index articles that discuss web 2.0 in health, fitness and medicine.

… Then I realized my mistake.

No blog. No RSS. Why was I writing articles on web 2.0 and not using the tools?

I alluded to this issue when I introduced The Highlight HEALTH Network, an aggregation of feeds from Highlight HEALTH and the Highlight HEALTH Web Directory.

Accordingly, I’m pleased to present Highlight HEALTH 2.0, a blog focused on following web 2.0 in health and medicine, hosted at the Highlight HEALTH Web Directory. My intention is to develop an article resource discussing social networks and health, and to catalog a series of reviews written by myself and guest writers, describing various health-focused social networks and what they have to offer. Since I believe health-focused social networks can affect patients the same as real-life social networks, offering the information as an additional resource to a web directory of quality health-related websites seemed appropriate.

YouTube as a health resource

Sunday, I published a new article on Highlight HEALTH 2.0 titled YouTube as a Source of Health Misinformation. The article describes a recent study examining “The Wisdom of Crowds” by evaluating YouTube as a source of information on immunization. Readers subscribed to the Highlight HEALTH Network will have already seen the article, since the website’s RSS feed is now included in the network.

In the spirit of web 2.0 and collaboration, I’m also looking for guest writers who are interested in writing an article on web 2.0 in health and medicine or a review of a social health network. A number of people have already expressed their interest in collaborating and I look forward to their articles and insights.

How about you?

This is a great opportunity to introduce yourself to a new audience, share your thoughts and insights, and promote your own site. I’ll treat each review as a guest post, with links back to your blog or website. I’ll also be writing about the articles and reviews here at Highlight HEALTH. Please email me if you’d like to be involved.

Additional resources related to web 2.0 in health and medicine can be found in the following Highlight HEALTH Web Directory categories: Health 2.0, Medicine 2.0, Fitness 2.0, Health Search and Weblogs.