Healthcare social networking needs some improvement.  People seeking specific resources may easily get overwhelmed by the overload of “medical” information on many social sites.  Health-related websites are often congested with parenting tips, diet trends and expert opinions on the latest health report (e.g. H1N1 Virus).  While this information may be valuable to some, it certainly is not valuable to every health consumer seeking specific medical information.

The current litany of healthcare social sites does not provide patients a means to locate and connect directly to others with similar health conditions and experiences.  Rather, websites provide daunting and broad message boards.  The problem with this means of communication is two-fold: first is the lack of regulation and consequently the amount of irrelevant posts or comments on message boards that patients must sift thru.  The second problem lies in the fact that patients (and caregivers) are putting their questions into cyberspace and waiting for the right people to happen upon their post.  There isn’t a direct way for patients to simply enter their medical conditions, treatment facilities, allergies, et cetera and get connected to people just like them.  That is, until now.

FacetoFace Health (FacetoFaceHealth.com) was designed to do just that.  The website is the brainchild of FacetoFace Health President and CEO, Nowell Outlaw.  Outlaw recognized there was a need for a vehicle which allowed healthcare consumers to find, connect and share information directly with each other after two family members were diagnosed with serious medical conditions.  He wanted to connect with patients who had been treated for the same illnesses (lymphoma) at a particular medical facility (MD Anderson), but became frustrated when he was unable to find a website which matched patients to each other based upon specific medical criteria. 

Nowell likens the flow of consumer-driven information on other health-related websites to a community bulletin board in a school cafeteria.  “Most sites simply provide a message board where someone posts a question and hopes that the right people happen to login and read the post” says Outlaw.  “We’ve taken steps to eliminate the waiting and gambling that comes from message board posts by connecting patients directly to one another.”  With this refreshing approach, patients can be matched and communicate directly with others who share their health experiences. Now the husband of a breast cancer patient or the mother of an ill child can reach out and ask others about their experiences with specific treatments, or medications – without having to post the question on a group message board and wait for someone, preferably the right someone, to reply.

“Our goal is to humanize health care.  We want to provide a straightforward and secure means for people to share their healthcare experiences and knowledge directly with others who may be going thru similar medical challenges” says Outlaw.  FacetoFace Health launched on April 7, 2009 and has been attracting new users every day to this new and improved version of health 2.0.