1. iBLOG for
HEALTH
Increasing Access to Health
Information through Blogging
Nurse Alvin Dakis
Country Chairperson
International Youth Council Pilipinas
Health Committee Chair, Youth & Students Sectoral Council
National Anti-Poverty Commission, Office of the President

2. iBLOG for HEALTH
• Quick Facts on Health PHL:
– Population: 91,983,000
– Universal Health Care (Aquino Health Agenda)
– 60% Filipinos die without seeing a health
professional
– 40-50% out-of-pocket expenditures on health
(2007)
– 70% could not afford to pay for health services
– 85% Filipinos are covered by PhilHealth

3. 6 Building Blocks of Health
•
•
•
•
•
•
Health Governance
Health Services
Health Human Resources
Health Regulation
Health Information Systems
Health Financing

4. Who can do health blogging?
• Health care professionals
• Health policy advocates
• Optimum Health & Specific Diseases
advocates
• Individuals with testimonies in treatment &
cure
• Basically anybody whose interest is in
health

5. Why HEALTH Blogging?
• Increase access to health information via the
internet;
• Share correct & up-to-date health information;
• Professional development & scientific
updates;
• Share personal experience from certain
treatment process;
• Conduct product/medical technology testing;
• Create health advisory articles; and
• Update heath policy & reforms

6. Types of Health Blogging
•
•
•
•
•
•
Diet Management / Food Blogs
Physical Fitness Blogs
Specific Diseases Info Blogs
Health Professionals’ Commentary Blogs
Professional organizations’ Blogs
Health Policy Info Blogs

7. Implications of Health Blogging
• Health information should be correct;
• Health information should be ethical;
• Health professionals should consider
ethical standards when blogging
especially in disclosing patients’ cases &
info;
• Health information should be guided by
national laws on health care;

8. Implications of Health Blogging
• Blogging personal health experiences still
affect public opinion about health care
services and processes;
• Health misinformation affects readers and
may cause to spread information which
they thought came from verified sources.

9. What Health Blogging is NOT
• Misinforming readers about facts;
• Disclosing confidential patient information;
• Using one’s blog as a tool to accuse
someone of contracting with a
communicable disease;
• Writing biased information to a certain
company (unless hired/contracted)

10. Challenges & Opportunities
Ahead
• Intra/inter regulation & continuous fact
checking
• In bounds of professional & ethical
practice for health service providers
• No organized health society for Filipino
health bloggers
• Few identified health bloggers
• Opportunities for travel, work, etc.

11. iBLOG for HEALTH
Visit my Health Blog at:
http://www.alvindakis.blogspot.com
E-mail me at: alvin.dakis@gmail.org
THANK YOU!