Using Wikipedia and Google for medical information

Some interesting abstracts from PubMed:

"Google is an efficient web resource for identifying specific medical information." Google was more efficient than all other resources for identifying medical information (P less than 0.0001) http://bit.ly/6FXATW

Google Scholar versus PubMed in locating primary literature to answer drug-related questions: no major differences http://bit.ly/8OygYt

Wikipedia is not authoritative and should only be a "supplemental source" of drug information http://bit.ly/7qzZ7k

Does Wikipedia provide evidence-based health care information? http://bit.ly/4WVLHt - No. Who is surprised?

Personality characteristics of Wikipedia members: Introverted women more likely to be members than extroverted women http://bit.ly/8YfrXb

Mobile Websites from Pubmed: Search Abstracts and Find Disease Associations http://bit.ly/7ucyn5 - Works on Kindle too. The mobile MedlinePlus (for consumers) is at m.medlineplus.gov http://bit.ly/6jjkt3

Wikipedia: A Key Tool for Global Public Health Promotion (review article)

Image source: Doctors Using Google by Philipp Lenssen, used with permission.

Using Google Docs to facilitate patient flow in a health center via a shared spreadsheet

From Google Docs Blog:

"It is difficult to keep track of which patients are in which rooms, how many patients are in the waiting room, and how far the doctors are falling behind with their patients for the day. If patients were late, canceled their appointments, or the waiting room was overflowing, the doctor would be the last to know."

As an experiment, Southeast Health Center incorporated the “Check-in Tracker”, a shared spreadsheet on Google Docs, into their clinic flow which you can see a sample of below:

Image source: Google Docs Blog.

"When a patient checks in at the front desk, the clerk types “a” into the slot where that patient was scheduled. Using the “change color with rules” function, that slot turns orange to let everybody in the clinic know that Dr. Mark’s 8:15 AM patient has arrived. If the 8:55 AM patient arrives at 9:15 AM, the front desk types in “L 9:15” into that slot and the slot turns pink. Dr. Mark can look at the Google spreadsheet and type an “x” if he is unable to see the late patient or “ok” if he has time to see the patient. Patients in rooms turn green and indicate which room number. Discharged patients turn blue.

Everybody communicates in real time, because we are all signed into the same account."

References:
Using Google Docs to facilitate patient flow in a community health center. Google Docs Blog.

30% of doctors have changed a patient's treatment as a result of an Internet search

From AMedNews:

86% of physicians use Internet to access health information. Why not 100%?

72% of physicians start their health information search with a search engine, 92% of those using Google.

A third of doctors have changed a patient's treatment as a result of an Internet search.

Consistent with other search engine research findings that users tend to click the most prominent links, 92% of physician searchers clicked on the links appearing at the top of the page, 46% clicked those in the middle of the page, and 24% clicked on those on the bottom. Also, 8% clicked on sponsored links.

References:
86% of physicians use Internet to access health information. AMedNews.
Image source: Doctors Using Google by Philipp Lenssen, used with permission.

Google Chrome Gets More Than 1,500 Extensions and Bookmark Sync

Google Chrome (version 4) now includes two of the browser's most frequently requested features: extensions and bookmark sync.

Extensions

Extensions let you add new features and functions to your browser. Some provide one-click access to some of your favorite web applications like Twitter, or news and information sources such as NPR. Others are useful tweaks for performing common online tasks such as browsing photos, getting directions or shopping.

Now you can browse over 1,500 items in the extensions gallery and install them on the stable version of Google Chrome.


Using Extensions on Google Chrome

Some of the extensions I installed:

Forecastfox Weather
Feedly
Google Share Button
Google Voice (by Google)
NPR: News, Music and Books
RSS Subscription Extension (by Google)
Page Rank

AdBlock by gundlach

Bookmark sync

Bookmark sync is a handy feature for those of you who use several computers — say, a laptop at work and a desktop at home. You can enable bookmark sync to synchronize your bookmarks on all of your computers so that when you create a bookmark on one computer, it's automatically added across all your computers. This means that you won't need to manually recreate the bookmark each time you switch computers.


Bookmark sync for Google Chrome

References:
Over 1,500 new features for Google Chrome
Extensions, bookmark sync and more for Google Chrome

Updated: 03/02/2010

Google Launches Real-Time Search: Tweets, Facebook, etc.

Google real-time search results are integrated in the main search page in a scroll down box - it includes tweets, MySpace, Facebook and other live updates from around the web. There is a link to "Latest" results at the top of the page. See the video below:


Official Google Video: Discover breaking news on the web with real-time updates from news, blogs and social networks.

The real-time search will gradually become available to all users. If you do not see it now, please refresh the search results at a later time.

CNN: A trip into the secret, online 'cloud'

"Microsoft and Amazon, replicate data several times, on servers around the world. They scatter it all over the place so as not to lose it. Data moves around both within cloud centers and from one data center to another, often crossing oceans and trekking continents to get there.

Some of these cloud companies employ armed guards, retina scans and "man traps," where doors lock on both sides of would-be entrants before letting them inside."

My opinion: The future of computing is in the cloud. I have authored multiple abstracts and scientific papers using Google Docs to collaborate with co-authors based in different states, countries and continents. Emailing a copy of a Microsoft Word document back and forth is quickly becoming a thing of the past. We need better collaboration tools that are not tied to a stationary desktop computer, a single laptop or a hard drive that can crash. Cloud computing is the way to go as long as we all use better security protocols and common sense.

References:
A trip into the secret, online 'cloud'. CNN.

How to follow Twitter users in Google Reader

In summary, @dreamingspires asked how you can follow more Twitter users without feeling overwhelmed with updates.

I only follow around 60 people on Twitter who in general do not post very frequently.

However, I follow more Twitter accounts in Google Reader which is actually nicer because I see the tweets grouped by user and I can use tags/folders. TweetDeck has groups but Google Reader is more efficient, it also has better search and saves all tweets. In addition, Google Reader is available from any Internet-connected computer while the current version of TweetDeck is only desktop-based. Seesmic has a web version but Google Reader is more efficient.



A screenshot of some of the medical Twitter feeds I subscribe to in Google Reader.

In short, you can expand the number of people you follow on Twitter by subscribing to their RSS feeds in Google Reader.

Currently, there is no tool that works better with large inflows of information than Google Reader in "condensed" view. Try switching the view modes in Google Reader by pressing the "1" and "2" keys.

@dreamingspires was concerned that interacting was not possible with the RSS feed but in fact it takes only 2 clicks - click on the tweet in Google Reader, which opens the Twitter page, and then click "reply".


The circle of online information (full version) (click to enlarge).

Related:
How to deal with the information overload from blogs, RSS and Twitter

Google Voice: Usage Statistics and My Experience

From Google Operating System:

Google Voice, which provides people with a single phone number that can be used to reach them on their work, home, or cell phones, has 1.419 million users.

Google Voice charges only for outbound calls to international locations; at present, fewer than 4% of all Google Voice users place outbound international calls.

Google emphasizes that Google Voice is not a phone service, it's a Web-based software application.

I have used Google Voice for about 2-3 years, when it was still a service called Grand Central, and my experience has been positive. You can embed a Google Voice widget in your blog sidebar which lets the website visitors call you without revealing your or their phone number. Google Voice automatically transcribes the voicemail as text and emails you a copy.

One of my colleagues was wondering if Google Voice can transcribe his dictations but this practice would not be HIPAA-compliant and may be against the terms of use of the service.

Nexus One - Google Voice

Updated: 01/18/2010

Google study: How physicians use the internet and search in their clinical practices

Embedded PDF: Google study: How physicians use the internet and search in their clinical practices.



Link via IgniteBLOG.

@amcunningham points out that the report is "unfortunately research carried out as market research for Google and doesn't help #meded very much."

How to make a Google Calendar public and embed it into a website

I have written in the past How Doctors Can Use Google Calendar to Help Patients See Their Practice Schedule and Make Appointments and How Patients Can Monitor Their Medical Condition with it.

The screencast below shows how to make a public Google Calendar and embed it in your website:



Screencast: How to make a Google Calendar public and embed it into a website, by by @jasonhbuck.

References:
Google Calendar for Doctors: Help Patients See Your Practice Schedule and Make Appointments
Google Calendar for Patients: Monitor Your Medical Condition

Google "wonder wheels" are rudimentary mind maps

Google "wonder wheel" for asthma looks like a rudimentary mind map: http://bit.ly/4tOOF (see below):


WikiMindMap provides better visual results http://bit.ly/2y4pnk (see below):



WikiMindMap is a website that organizes wiki content in a mind map format http://bit.ly/1ZV5rC and http://www.wikimindmap.org

See the "Web 2.0 and medicine" Google Wonder wheel http://bit.ly/3iHR1 - @giustini, @berci, @laikas and @DrVes make the top results:

Related:
ICU Mind Maps http://bit.ly/1VIVOi and http://bit.ly/2EnZLi

Medical profession's use of mind mapping - WikIT http://goo.gl/1Kjd

Note taking with mind maps did not improve the scores of medical students (study) http://goo.gl/8qeQ

Study claims mind maps don't help learning - "you should just take tests" - NYTimes http://goo.gl/kvdSZ and http://goo.gl/6ql7n

Google Dashboard shows the data associated with your Google account

From the official Google blog:

"Have you ever wondered what data is stored with your Google Account? The Google Dashboard offers a simple view into the data associated with your account — easily and concisely in one location." See the video below:



"Designed to be simple and useful, the Dashboard summarizes data for each product that you use (when signed in to your account) and provides you direct links to control your personal settings. Dashboard covers more than 20 products and services, including Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Web History, Orkut, YouTube, Picasa, Talk, Reader, Alerts, Latitude and many more." Check out www.google.com/dashboard

This is a very useful service. It looks like I have 10,000 emails in Gmail and 399 RSS subscriptions in Google Reader.

References:
Transparency, choice and control — now complete with a Dashboard!

Google Wave: Early Prototype Not So Useful

Google Wave is "a personal communication and collaboration tool" - a web-based service and communications protocol designed to merge e-mail, instant messaging, wiki, and social networking.

I got my Google Wave account yesterday (09/30/2009) - it looks like another Knol (a Google Wikipedia clone that few people use) - very much beta - it could be more useful after they activate more features.

If you have a Google Wave account and you send an invitation, they cannot be used immediately - it takes time for the other account to be "activated." Google Wave invites are only nominations and don't necessarily mean you'll be let in immediately http://bit.ly/7IN40

I would set my Google Wave expectations low if I were you - this is probably the best way to be pleasantly surprised when you get your account.



Image source: Wikipedia, Google.

Related:
Google Wave's Best Use Cases. Lifehacker.
How to Manage a Group Project in Google Wave. Lifehacker.

Updated: 11/18/2009

Doctors add expert insights and comments about websites in Google Sidewiki

From Google:

"As you browse the web, it's easy to forget how many people visit the same pages and look for the same information. What if everyone, from a local expert to a renowned doctor, had an easy way of sharing their insights with you about any page on the web? What if you could add your own insights for others who are passing through?

Google Sidewiki allows you to contribute helpful information next to any webpage. Google Sidewiki appears as a browser sidebar, where you can read and write entries along the side of the page."



Here are two examples how doctors add expert insights and comments about websites in Google Sidewiki:

- Michael Roizen http://bit.ly/132azY

- Steven Nissen http://bit.ly/10HWLk

Both are prominent physicians at the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic.

A few comments on this new Google service are posted below:

Google Steps Where Many Have Stumbled: Sidewiki http://bit.ly/2fxwqC

@Scobleizer: "Google Sidewiki is latest attempt by big company to make money off of my content on my blog. I really hate companies that let people put stuff on top of my content without my consent."

Google Launches Sidewiki — More Like a Universal Commenting System http://bit.ly/nMwvN

Related:
How to Claim Your Website’s Google Sidewiki http://bit.ly/6m89E

Updated: 10/04/2009

Embeddable Google Trends Gadget

This is an example of Embeddable Google Trends gadget:



Read more here: http://is.gd/xp10 and http://is.gd/zebt

"Search trends are a great way to see what's popular. Use this gadget to see what people are searching for on your own website.

Google Trends is based on search query volume and is updated daily."

Google Voice opens for everybody, invites on their way

From Google blog:

Google Voice is a service that gives you one phone number to link all your phones and makes voicemail as easy as email. If you requested an invitation on the Google Voice site or previously on GrandCentral, keep your eye out for an invite email.

To learn more about Google Voice, check out the video below. If you haven't signed up for a Google Voice invite, make sure to get on the list by leaving us your email address at www.google.com/voiceinvite.



I use Google Voice widget as a contact tool on my biographical website and would encourage you to sign up for this useful and free service.


Nexus One - Google Voice

Updated: 01/18/2010