Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Twitter for Hospice & Palliative Medicine
You may have heard of this thing called Twitter. Or you may not have heard anything about it.
Basically Twitter is a microblogging service accessible from the Twitter website, computer desktop or mobile phone.
For a quick primer check out the video below (email subscribers click here to see video):
Or this slideshow on how Twitter changed someone's life:
I have been experimenting with how Twitter may work for Pallimed and found one particular aspect of Twitter helpful even for non-Twitter users: the Twitter search function.
This is a great insight to hear what people are saying about topics important to you. Your field, your business, your name, a movie, a book, anything. Most Twitter postings (called "tweets') are public and the search gives you a quick feel for what people think.
For example here are tweets with the word 'hospice' in them (one with a 'dirty' word - you have been warned):
Bretonia: Just finished writing a 10 minute speech for a local hospice. Sure could use a good joke about death or dying that's not tooooooooo dark.
CommuteKim: gang-anyone who likes flowers, dm me on location for "Friends with Flowers" a non-profit serving hospice patients. SOOOO many flowers!
dhmspector: Bleh. Rough day seeing mom in hospice: at Bittersweet on college ave getting brownies to make myself feel better.
jimmiekersh: Update M-I-L: Her blood pressure for the last 10 hours has been in the range of 70s-60s over 30s-50s. Hospice Nurse if coming out now.
DeSean77: Day 3 of my hospice experience I learned that people live a life time and never feel like they really been heard. I let em know im all ears
lrice: : Sitting hospice vigil with my father. It's a sad, difficult, yet grace-filled time.
Hezra: well, no throwing up, dad is doing pretty well.Home. my moms brother in lawa just found out he has cancer all over. hospice is moving in.
jsmithready: @writerstephanie We have a closed-off guest room, aka, "The Plant Hospice."
TrinitynScotlan: hopes aunts move to hospice goes well.. considering its hospice :)
jimmiekersh: Update M-I-L: Hospice told us that we can prepare for her death no later than Tues and possibly tonight. Our hospice friends are great.
sShap: http://tinyurl.com/ca5o5k (expand): hospice accepting comic books. This should be a national thing.
You get so many different perspective about hospice and how people are coping around their loved ones in hospice. Volunteers for hospice seem to be popular users of Twitter also.
Try typing in palliative care or the name of your hospice. There are even job listings for hospice positions on Twitter. If you are on Twitter feel free to tweet or follow me at 'ctsinclair' or 'Pallimed.' Other good hospice related Twitter users include: lesmorgan, SanDiegoHospice, HospiceChicago, palliativecare, Dethmama,
Try typing in palliative care or the name of your hospice. There are even job listings for hospice positions on Twitter. If you are on Twitter feel free to tweet or follow me at 'ctsinclair' or 'Pallimed.' Other good hospice related Twitter users include: lesmorgan, SanDiegoHospice, HospiceChicago, palliativecare, Dethmama,