MODULE 5: Ethical Considerations

Why would a patient want to create a blog?

There probably are as many reasons why a person starts a blog as there are bloggers. Blogs created by patients can be a creative way of expressing viewpoints, concerns, experiences and life stories. They can be a source of healing for many people as demonstrated by one blog I viewed where a woman lost her husband in a fishing accident in Alaska. She received many positive support comments from friends of the man she had never even met and how her husband’s life had changed theirs. Other blogs created by patients can act in a similar manner as support groups do for people undergoing physical, mental, spiritual and financial challenges related to their conditions. Everyone, including the patient, can gain a sense of support, express ideas to overcome challenges, provide insight to personal experiences and can keep up on the “latest news” about the person’s condition. The blog created by a patient can be a way of disseminating information to a larger group of people in a more efficient manner. Additionally, the comments linked to the blog tend to connect all the reviewers allowing them to share in the patient’s life story.

Why would a health care provider create a blog?

Similar to a patient’s blog, a healthcare provider may establish a blog to help people who are suffering from certain conditions/challenges. A provider may open this blog to anyone for comments or keep it private to his/her patients. Again, similar to the patient’s blog, this “support blog” could be beneficial to all who read it. This type of blog would also allow the provider to gain insight into the patient’s thoughts and concerns which they may not openly discuss during clinic visits. The provider could also correct misconceptions, expand on related treatment information, provide additional avenues of support and develop a greater appreciation for the patient’s day to day life experiences. If a provider is willing, the blog site can also be used as a way for patients to provide information related to customer satisfaction.
A provider could also use a blog site as a way of educating the viewers. In addition to narrative and pictures to represent the training, video clips or links to relevant information can be imbedded in the blog.

What are ethical considerations when blogging on a public website, such as we've used for this class?

Certainly the issue of privacy is a huge concern when posting anything into cyberspace. While there are protective strategies one can institute to minimize the ability of hackers to gain access to protected information, there will always be the potential to have the site compromised. Something we have probably all heard at one time or another is, “Only put on the internet what you would not mind having on the evening news”…because in essence, that is what could actually happen. Personal information should and must be protected as much as possible. If the website is private, establishment of some basic guidelines and rules should be agreed upon by the users. But if a site is truly public, then anything can and probably will happen.
There is no doubt that Americans are probably one of the most litigious groups of people in the world. This is a lawsuit happy society. After all, we have heard about the woman suing Google because she walked into traffic because of the directions provided by Google were “unsafe”. Blog postings, emails, website information can all be entered into courts of law as evidence in privacy violations, breeches in ethical conduct, malpractice and negligence. Before you push the send button, only type things you can justify in a court of law.